Freaky Vampires
by auTumnlove77
Summary: One night changes everything when Damon and Stefan switch bodies, leaving Elena very confused. While Stefan tries to fix it Elena starts to fall hard for the 'new' Stefan and his crazy  personality, without knowing that it's actually Damon on the inside..
1. Switch

Chapter One

"The Chinese Fortune"

"Oh c'mon guys. It'll be fun! It's Chinese Food!"

"Fun?" scoffed Damon. "I won't be sitting for hours in some stupid restaurant watching you two snuggle up together and confess your undying boring love for each other."

Elena rolled her eyes and Stefan scowled. "Damon will just end up eating our waitress anyway and ruining everything." He retorted.

"Will not." pouted Damon.

Elena huffed and decided that this was going nowhere. She decided on a different approach. "Please? For me?" She looked at both of the brothers with large pleading eyes, knowing, guiltily, that neither of them could resist. And, simultaneously, both of their faces softened.

"Fine." said Damon. "But only for you. Not for that bunny murderer over there."

"Please, none of that tonight. We just need to relax. No fighting or killing or compelling or vampires."

"Uh…"

"You know what I mean."

"Seriously Elena." Damon said, taking a step closer. "Why not dump this loser and let it be just be you and me. We'd have a lot more fun without him brooding over the sushi."

"And we'd have a lot more fun without you flirting with everything that moves." Stefan snarled.

"See?" Elena cried. "This is why we're doing this. I'm sick of you two fighting like little kids! Just get over it already! You're vampire brothers who were screwed by the same bitch. End of story."

Stefan sighed. "I'm sorry Elena. Damon's just so…"

"Undeniably amazing." finished Damon. Elena glared at him and he threw up his hands in a helpless gesture. "Well let's go then. I am hungry." He winked at Elena and strode out the door.

"Behave." muttered Elena to Stefan who was looking murderous.

"I will. Right after I stake him." He took a step forward and Elena grabbed his arm.

"Stefan! One night."

"Fine. One night."

"If you could see that I'm the one who understands you! Been here all along, so why can't you see-eee you belong with me-eee! You belong with me."

Stefan buried his face in his hands. He wondered if it was too late to back out now. Damon had insisted on driving, and, of course, Elena was in the front seat, with Stefan moping in the backseat. The radio was turned up to an obscene volume, with Elena and Damon singing happily along. It was disgusting.

"So then," Damon was saying after the song, a signature smirk on his face. "It rained, and there was mud and topless girls everywhere."

Elena, to his surprise, laughed. "Stop messing around!" She smacked him on the arm and Damon suddenly swerved the wheel. "Damon! Be careful!" Damon steadied the wheel quickly. Was he blushing?

"We weren't ever in any trouble. I'm an expert driver." Damon added quickly. Stefan snorted. "You got something to say Stephanie?"

"Stephanie? Really?" Stefan asked.

"Well you do act like a girl on her period. Dear diary, Damon is such a jerk. He's always so mean to me." He mocked in a high girlish voice.

"If there's one of us that acts like a girl on their period it's you Damon." Stefan countered. "My love for Katherine was real!"

"Oh look at that!" Elena interrupted quickly. "We're here! Just turn there Damon." Damon obeyed and swung into a parking spot without slowing down. "God Damon!" Elena cried, easing her death grip on the edge of the seat. He threw a smirk at her.

"Expert remember?" he said as Elena slowed her breathing. He and Stefan were out of the car before she could blink, and she jumped as they both appeared outside her door.

"Here Elena, let me get the door-" Stefan began, he reached for the door, but was suddenly thrown out of the way. Damon opened the door, his eyes flashing. He held out his hand. Elena pushed Damon away and ran to Stefan.

"Are you…?"

"Yeah. Fine." Stefan groaned slightly as he stood up.

"Damon what the hell? Tonight's supposed to be…"

"Yeah yeah I know. Us making up and being friends again. Yipee."

"Good then let's go." She grabbed Stefan's hand and all but dragged him away from Damon. They all walked to the restaurant and Damon was impressed. It was large and expensive looking. It suddenly explained Elena's fancy attire. His black leather jacket and jeans stood out, but he didn't care.

Why had he agreed to this in the first place? Oh, right. Elena. He studied her now. She was holding hands with Stefan, and he was surprised how much that hurt. But he would never let that show.

"Seating for four, please" Elena's voice jerked him out of his thoughts.

The host eyed Elena with a look Damon knew too well. "It's an hour wait babe." He said. "If you want to do something more interesting that can be arranged ." He winked at her and leaned closer. Elena looked disgusted while Stefan looked confused. Was he blind? Did he not see how stunning Elena was tonight?

"Hey." Damon said softly. The man turned to him. "Get us a table now. I don't care what you have to do." The man nodded and started to go, but Damon caught his shoulder. "And stay away from Elena, or I swear, I will rip your head off so fast you won't have enough to time to regret your worthless life." He shoved him away after a hard glare.

Elena frowned at Damon. "Did you have to compel him? Remember what I-"

"What no thank you?" Damon asked, an eyebrow raised.

"I can take care of myself, _thank you_."

Damon smirked. "Of course you can angel."

Stefan cleared his throat loudly. Elena blinked and took a step back; she hadn't realized how close she had gotten to Damon, who was now smirking.

"Let's just go. Our table's ready." Elena mumbled. They followed her to table, with an angry looking family leaving. Elena glared at Damon again as the complaining family got pushed out of the restaurant by a dazed looking man.

As a little boy gave Stefan a strange look Damon whispered "He killed the Easter Bunny." The boy looked at Stefan and began to cry.

"What?" asked Stefan. "Are you okay?" The boy smiled and kicked Stefan in the crotch, and ran back after his family.

"Take that you Easter Bunny killer!" he cried, and stuck his tounge out. Stefan was kneeled over in pain, his eyes watering."C'mon you wuss." said Damon. He dragged Stefan up. Stefan glared, but said nothing. They slid into a booth in the dimly lit corner of the room. Elena slid in first, followed by Stefan , who nonchalantly pushed Damon to the other side. Damon slid in, and smirked.

"So who's our fourth person? Stefan's pet squirrel?"

Elena smiled involuntarily. "Nope. Bonnie is."

Damon stood up. "And now I'm leaving."

"Damon! Sit down! You agreed! Besides, it's too late. Here she comes now."

Damon looked desperate. "She tried to kill me, Elena! She set me on fire! You can't honestly believe that I would…"

"Elena?" Bonnie appeared at the table, a confused look on her face. She was wearing a short black dress, her hair in a tight bun. "What are…they doing here? I thought it was just gonna be Caroline and us."

Elena smiled sheepishly. "Change of plans?" she suggested.

"Wow. I just realized I have lots of homework to do so, I really have to get going…"

"Bonnie! Not you too! I can't stand all this fighting! We're friends, and we have to at least pretend to like each other if we want to stop Katherine from whatever she's doing."

Damon sniffed. "How touching, Elena."

Bonnie glared at him. "I'm sorry Elena. I just refuse to be anywhere near him. He's a killer."

"Bonnie please? It's only going to be an hour."

Bonnie sighed. "Whatever. But I'm not sitting next to him."

"Ouch." Whistled Damon.

"Or Stefan sorry."

Elena rolled her eyes. "Fine. Stefan can you sit next to Damon?"

Stefan eyed her speculatively. "Do you want me to kill him?"

"Not if I burn him alive first and serve him as the main course." Bonnie growled.

Damon looked amused. "I know you want to eat me." Suddenly, he keeled over in pain, his hands pressed to his temples.

"Guys! Seriously! Can we get through one dinner without killing each other? We haven't even sat down yet!" Elena screamed. Damon collapsed, and rubbed his head.

"Hello!" The four all jumped in unison. A small, Asian lady was smiling happily at them. "Can I get you something to eat?" Stefan sighed and sat next to Damon, who wrinkled his nose in disgust. Bonnie slid in next to Elena. "Yeah. Um, sure." They all studied the menus and read out what they first saw. The waitress wrote it down and happily chattered away.

"Kung Pao, Damon? You sure you can handle it?" Bonnie asked as the waitress came back with their meals.

Damon glared at her and picked up his chopsticks. He scooped up an exaggerated amount of meat and rice and popped it in his mouth. He smiled as he chewed and swallowed. "See? I'm.." His face contorted. "Oh shit! That's hot!" He flew up and downed Elena's water as they all laughed. He glared at them and sat down.

"I hate you all."

"We know." Laughed Stefan.

Elena was still giggling as she picked up her chopsticks, but the smile fell from her face as she fumbled with them.

"Need help, sweetheart?" Damon asked.

"No I'm…"

"Here…" Damon said. "You put one hand here, and wrap this finger here…and put your thumb there. Now try. " Stefan and Bonnie didn't fail to notice how his fingers lingered on hers.

"Oh! It worked! Thanks Damon." Their eyes met, and she looked down quickly.

"Damon..." Stefan warned.

"Just drop it Stefan." Elena said.

"What? Don't let him manipulate you Elena." Bonnie said, and Stefan nodded.

"He's not manipulating me!"

"Now you're protecting him?"

"Maybe I…"

"Would you need anything else?" It was the waitress again, and everyone unconsciously leaned back.

"No thanks." muttered Elena. The waitress narrowed her eyes, but walked away.

The rest of the dinner was eaten in silence, with a few futile attempts at small talk. Finally, their waitress came with their check. "Here you go! And yes! Don't forget your fortune cookie!" She gave them all a strange look as she placed one cookie in the middle of the table. "Have a nice night." She said, and quickly walked away.

"I love fortune cookies." Bonnie said, and picked it up."I used to know what they would say before I'd open them. But they are a bunch of crap. I'm better." She ripped off the plastic wrapping, and the tan cookie fell into her palm.

Bonnie stared at it for a moment, and frowned. Then, slowly, she snapped open the fortune cookie. Bonnie pulled out the fortune and began to read.

"_Four different souls and four different destinies._

_Denial could lead to eternal love or heartbreak._

_Be not afraid in what you do,_

_Love who's right or you could be trapped evermore."_

There was a short silence as everyone pondered this. Then Damon smirked. "That makes no sense. It's just a piece of paper. Can we leave now? Steffie's paying right?" Stefan rolled his eyes and the tense atmosphere was broken.

"Yeah let's go." Elena said. "Can you drive us home?"

"Sure. If I drive this time." Stefan said

"Yeah right." Damon snorted. They all laughed uneasily as they exited the resturaunt, unaware of the pair of black eyes watching their process.

Damon yawned as he got up, feeling strangely heavy. He rubbed his head, and it did feel bigger. Weird. Was he wasted last night? Why did he feel so strange? A shower would help. He swung out of bed and almost fell over. Yeah, he was drunk. He dragged himself to his bathroom and splashed his face with water. As he reached for a towel, something in the mirror caught his eye.

"Oh shit" he muttered, as a pair of green eyes stared from the mirror.

Stefan.

He was Stefan.

**So did you like? Yes, it was inspired by freaky Friday! Loved that movie! Should I just stop it? Dumb idea? Good? Should I have Bonnie and Elena switch places too? Tell me! Please review!**


	2. Elena

Chapter Two

Here's chapter two! Sorry for the long wait. I've been busy with school and stuff. Plus, I've been doing a lot more reading fanfics than writing them. You people are amazing writers! Lol. I'd also like to thank (why does this suddenly feel like I'm getting an Emmy?)all the people that reviewed, favorite, or alerted. I love you! Well, on with the story. Enjoy

Previously: **Damon yawned as he got up, feeling strangely heavy. He rubbed his head, and it did feel bigger. Weird. Was he wasted last night? Why did he feel so strange? A shower would help. He swung out of bed and almost fell over. Yeah, he was drunk. He dragged himself to his bathroom and splashed his face with water. As he reached for a towel, something in the mirror caught his eye.**

"**Oh shit" he muttered, as a pair of green eyes stared from the mirror.**

**Stefan. **

**He was Stefan.**

**xxxxxxxxxxxx**

He was hideous.

Damon continued to stare in the mirror. He raised his arm, and Stefan raised his arm. He stuck his tongue out, and Stefan did too. Damon blinked a couple of times and rubbed his eyes, but Stefan was still there, blinking blearily at him.

Now that he was more awake, Damon noticed that he wasn't in his bathroom. He didn't own lotion. Or hand moisturizer. Or…no way. Damon smirked as he picked up a purple bottle. Hairspray. Damon snorted as he replaced the bottle, thinking that he was never gonna let Stefan live that down. Or Elena, really.

Unless…Was this a dream? Or more likely a nightmare. Or maybe….Bonnie.

Oh how he hated her. If she couldn't set him on fire with the blink of an eye he'd snap her neck. But…he could still annoy her. Smirking at that, Damon left the bathroom. Yep. He was in Stefan's room, with more candles than a church.

"Stefan?" Damon jumped at the voice; he hadn't heard anyone one coming. All of his senses were dimmed with stupid animal blood. He turned to see Elena smiling at him. Smiling. God how he had missed her smile. When was the last time she smiled at him anyway? It seemed like ages. "You're up late." She said softly.

Damon's mind couldn't think of anything as she approached him, her heart in her eyes. Her own presence surrounded him, her smell, the way the sunlight seemed to catch in her hair… He had dreamed of her looking like that, like she loved him. His heart melted.

Wait.

"What did you call me?" Damon asked carefully. His voice wasn't his. It was calm and deep and way too serious. Ew.

Elena stopped a couple inches in front of him, and put her hands on his forearms. Her hands were incredibily warm and soft, and his skin tingled at the touch. "What are you talking about?" she asked, clearly confused. "Stefan, you're scaring me."

Damon pondered this for a second. So it wasn't a trick of the mirror. He really was…Stefan. Damon shuddered.

"Are you okay?" Elena asked. She cared for him. Damon's heart fluttered before he realized that he wasn't actually himself. She cared for Stefan, not him.

But she didn't know that.

Damon gave a dramatic Stefan sigh and wrinkled his forehead. "I'm fine Elena teddy bear." Was that right? Elena raised her eyebrows. "Uh. Sweetie pie dumpling." He continued. "I'm just exhausted from last night, and all the stress with Katherine and bunnies…" Pretending to be Stefan was harder than he thought.

Elena didn't seem convinced. "Were you drinking last night? You seem different today."

Damon raised his eyebrows, deciding to play dumb.

Elena sighed. "Never mind about that. I'm just being stupid. And I'm sorry about last night. I know Damon can be an ass."

So this is what they talked about? "What? I-He is not!" He burst without thinking. Damnit! What was he doing? He was going to blow his cover.

"Stefan will you please stop trying to protect him? You should be happy that I hate him, that I'm not another Katherine. He killed my brother."

Damon winced. She really did hate him. Last night, he thought…but no. Of course not.

"Maybe you should give him a chance Elena. He spent the past 150 years chasing after a woman who just told him that she never loved him. And then you say the exact same thing to him the same night. He just got pushed over the edge." Damon hated at this moment that he was in Stefan's body. He wanted to tell her himself, to make her understand, to see the malice fade from her eyes…

Elena's eyes widened. "I had no idea…How do you know all this?" she questioned.

Damon lowered his eyes. "Damon told me?"He said, more like a question than an answer.

"Why would he tell you that? Is he…okay?" At that last word, Damon's eyes shot to her face. She did still care. He smirked triumphantly. As soon as he got out of this pansy's body, he could confront her. "Stefan? Are you smiling?" Elena sounded incredulous. Damon's grin melted away instantly, but not without a quick snort. Was she surprised over a smile? Of course brood-face never smiled around Elena. He wondered how Elena could put up with that. Then, an idea hit Damon, and he bit his lip to hide another smirk.

Composing himself, he looked intently at Elena. "Elena, I need to talk to you." He said it slow and haltingly, hoping to sound tortured and depressed.

"About what? And…um…Stefan? Is there something in your eye?" Elena looked curiously at Stefan's face, whose eyes were bulging and twitching.

Damon frowned. "What?"

Suddenly, and to Damon's complete surprise, Elena doubled over in laughter. "Oh I get it!" she giggled. "You're mocking Damon's eye-thing. No offense, but only he can do it." She continued to snort in laughter. "He needs to see this!"

Damon smiled again. He absolutely loved Elena's laugh. It was adorable and completely infectious. He would've laughed along, but he wasn't even sure if Stefan could laugh.

Just then, the door squeaked open, and both Elena and Damon turned in surprise. Elena grinned at the man in the doorway, seemingly forgetting her supposed hatred for him again, but Damon only gaped. After all, not everyone can see themselves like this.

Damon's body glared at Damon. "We need to talk."

xxxxxxxxx

**Thank you for reading! Please leave a review! You have no idea how happy it makes me!**


	3. Confusion

Chapter Three

**Wow. Amazing episode. I think my jaw is still dropped. Glad Stefan and Elena are still apart... lol. And i'm lovin Jeremy and Bonnie right now :) Thank you thank you reviewers! You are amazing ****! Okay so this chapter may get a little confusing. Keep in mind that Damon is still going to be written as Damon even though he looks like Stefan. So obviously, Elena will call Damon Stefan. And vice versa with Stefan. Got it? Okay. I just made everything even more confusing, didn't I? Sorry! Welll…Good luck! Lol.**

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

"We need to talk."

This was getting really weird. If he wasn't himself, then who was him? It didn't even make sense in his head. Could it be…Stefan? That explained the angry, puckered look that almost made Damon laugh. He wondered if he had ever looked like that in his life.

Elena was undeterred. "Damon! There you are! You have to see…um Damon? Are you okay?" Stefan…or whoever was in Damon's body, didn't even glance her way, but continued to glare at Damon menacingly. Damon had to admit…he was pretty scary.

"Fine." Damon yawned. He exited the room with himself, leaving a very confused Elena behind.

"So…" The two had made their way into Damon's room. Damon's body closed the door, an act that made Damon slightly uneasy. "Are we breaking up?" Damon asked, successfully breaking the tension that was building up from…himself.

Damon's body turned to look at him, and his menacing face melted to one of exhaustion and slight relief. "Damon? It's me, Stefan." he said cautiously.

"Unfortunately, not in the flesh." Damon sat himself on his bed.

Stefan laughed bitterly. "So now what?"

"Well how about we call that witch over, make her undo this spell, then kill her?"

"Fine. Except for that last part, obviously." Stefan cocked his head with a knowing smile and Damon made a face.

"Okay and let's hurry this up 'cause this is freaking me out. I don't know how you do it, but your managing to make me a lot less sexy."

Stefan exhaled. "Same…I mean, not the sexy part. But I'm feeling a lot more powerful." He clenched fists and bit his lip. "I mean, I can hear everything! Including you and Elena talking, Damon. Why are you pretending to be me? What are you up to this time?"

Damon gave his best Stefan martyr innocent gaze. "Nothing."

"What do you think I'm stupid? Just because I'm in your body doesn't mean I have your brains. I'm not going to let you manipulate her, and ruin what we have together."

"Don't worry. I'm not gonna try to break up your annoyingly perfect relationship."

"You're not?"

"I'll try. It'll be…difficult." Damon said with a brilliant smile.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Stefan roared, making Damon take an involuntary step back. Wow. When his eyes flashed like that, it was almost scary. Damon felt something akin to sympathy at all the people he terrified over the years with that same face. He wondered if he ever looked at Elena that way.

"Ooh testy." Damon shook his head tersely. "But if you'll excuse me, I have a beautiful Elena waiting for me. Have fun figuring this out, _Damon_." He smiled cruelly and headed for the door, but he never made it.

In a flash, Damon was against a wall with rough hands crushing his airway. He looked surprised, into his own darkening blue eyes, with veins becoming more prominent in seconds. Damon tried to make a snarky comment about how Stefan was strangling himself, but only a strangled hiss came out. Damn.

"Getting a taste of your own medicine, huh Damon? Got nothing to say? Well that's a first." Damon could only glare mutely as Stefan looked on with savage enjoyment. "I'm the strong one now Damon. So stay the hell away from Elena."

"What the hell?"

The voice was clear and high, and murderous. Stefan and Damon both turned, Damon with difficulty.

"Damon!" She surged forward, and Stefan could almost taste her fury. "Get the hell off of Stefan!" Stefan winced and pulled guiltily away from Damon, leaving him able to take a sharp, unnecessary breath of air. Elena did not stop however, but continued her deadly advance. When she reached him, she drew back her hand and slapped Stefan hard, hard enough to snap his head back. Stefan gaped and rubbed the now red mark on his cheek. Damon smirked at the irony.

"Elena…"Stefan started, in a small, pathetic voice that made Damon embarrassed.

Elena was unyielding. "How dare you? If you ever touch him again I swear I'll drive a stake through your heart." Damon winced. Would Elena really do that? A minute ago he swore that she cared for him a little bit but now he wasn't so sure.

She sighed and softened at the sight of Stefan's terrified face, which made Damon grimace. He never looked like that. Stefan was ruining him, his image, and he was going to pay. She shook her head and turned to Damon. "Come on Stefan. Go and get ready or we'll be late for school."

"What?" he asked absently. His mind was still half on how quickly she had forgiven Stefan for half strangling him to death. Maybe she didn't really care that much about Stefan, he thought with a small smirk.

"School. You know that place we go five times a week if we're not being hunted by sadistic vampires."

"You've got to be kidding me." Damon muttered. Stefan snorted, his eyes now sparkling.

"Well I know we haven't been there in a while, but we should at least go once this month."

"You actually go to school?" Damon had to think of a way out of this. There was no way in hell he was going to…

"Please?" Oh God no. Not _that_ face. Elena did it again, her big brown doe eyes silently pleading. It was too late. Damon's carefully tended walls were crumbling. But it couldn't be that bad. It was a whole day away from Stefan ruining his beautiful body, and a whole day with Elena. A loving Elena. If he was going to be stuck in…in _this_, he might as well have fun with it.

"Sure. You can just go on ahead and I'll meet you there."

Elena smiled quickly, but it faded when she looked at Stefan. "Stay away from Stefan, Damon." She gave him one last cold glare, before leaving the room.

Stefan turned to Damon when she left. "Have fun in school today." He said with a slightly mocking smile. Damon wondered if being in his body was starting to rub off on him.

"Don't worry. I will." Damon smirked at the brief flash of horror in his, well Stefan's, blue eyes.

"Damon, please don't do anything that I wouldn't do. I'm going to see Bonnie today, and everything will back to normal before you know it."

"Whatever. Now if you'll excuse me, I have your life to ruin." Damon crossed the room, took something out of his drawer, and left the room, leaving an open mouthed Stefan behind. He was still smirking as he made his way into Stefan's large room, and rifled through his stuff. His hands ran over something hard and thin, and he pulled out a picture. Katherine. Damon grimaced. Why did Stefan still have this, after all that happened recently? He thought about tearing it up but he rejected the idea. The reason behind it however, surprised and frightened him. Damon shook his head dismissively, and pushed the discovery out of his head.

Damon found what he was looking for, and quickly changed into dark jeans, a black shirt and a black leather jacket and boots. He finished off with a spray of his own cologne and messed up his hair.

Damon smiled into the mirror as he fixed his dark shades into place.

He was ready for school.

**Xxxxxxxx**

**And that's it! Hope you weren't too confused. It'll be better next chapter when Stefan is with Bonnie and Damon is at school! Oh and would you rather see Stefan with Bonnie or Caroline? Tell me and revieww! **


	4. School

**Omg. That was the most amazing episode. EVER. I mean, Stefan could say I love you a hundred times and it couldn't compare. Is there any way to get over compulsion? Besides becoming a vampire obviously? When Jeremy got compelled he eventually remembered right? He said he still felt hurt right? And maybe Elena will put two and two together. We delena fans can only hope. Or maybe we can form a crazy mob and storm the studio. Who's with me? Lol. Here goes chapter four…btw when it's Elena's POV Damon is Stefan, kay? Thank you! **

Chapter Four

As Damon started to make his way out of the boarding house, he was stopped by a mischievous looking Stefan. "Here's my schedule and your lunch." He handed him a white paper and a brown bag. "Have fun in school. Oh and Damon." Damon raised his eyebrows as Stefan stepped closer. "If you do anything to mess up my relationship with Elena or my friends or school, I swear I will screw up your life so much you won't want to change back."

Damon swallowed. "Fine. Goodbye _big_ brother." They both nodded tartly, and Damon headed for his car.

Today was going to be interesting.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Elena POV**

"How are you doing Elena?" Matt's blue eyes searched hers and Elena felt a quirk of annoyance. For a minute, he had reminded her of Stefan.

"Fine." She sighed, waving her hand dismissively.

Matt sighed. "Well you just seem tired…" _I am_, thought Elena. She was tired. Tired of people asking how she was doing. Tired of feeling like her life would never be normal again. Tired of Katherine strutting around and destroying every shred of happiness she had. Tired of Stefan's over protectiveness. Tired of Damon being Damon.

"I'm_ fine_." Elena's said tersely, her eyes flashing. She was on edge after the whole conversation with Stefan and what Damon did afterwards. At that thought, another flare of anger shot up her back. Why did they have to hate each other? Why did everything have to be so complicated? She sighed at the hurt in Matt's straightforward blue eyes. "I'm sorry, Matt. I'm just stressed with school and homework…" She faltered with her pathetic excuse. She never did like lying, especially to someone like Matt.

"It's all right Elena. You don't have to tell me if you want to."He nodded understandingly and Elena swallowed her guilt, sighing in relief. She could always count on him. Matt walked away, and Elena turned back to locker. She reached for the lock, and then hesitated. Shit. With everything that happened recently, her mind had no more room for something as simple as a locker combination. Elena had honestly no idea of what it could be. It was if there was a hole in her mind where those numbers should be.

Elena tugged at her lock hotly. This could not be happening. She pondered skipping again. Would one more day really matter? With one last frustrated pull at the still stubborn lock, Elena turned on her heel and marched out of the school, ignoring her classmate's curious looks burning into her back. She didn't care what they thought anyway.

Another sigh of relief escaped her lips as she stepped into the cool air, but she froze solid on the school steps. A man was making his way through the still milling crowd of students. For some unknown reason, Elena felt a thrill of excitement when she saw him, which was strange because she didn't know him. Everyone was just as enthralled as she was, parting for him as they stared agape.

As he approached, familiarity clouded Elena. It looked like…but it couldn't be…Stefan.

This man walked in a way Stefan never had before, each step full of barely leashed confidence. A small smile graced his lips as he noticed her staring, mouth slightly ajar. He was dressed in all black, dark shades shrouding his eyes.

The confident smirk was still in place as he approached her and, to her complete surprise, ran the last couple of steps and captured her in a giant bear hug, lifting her up and spinning her in a circle.

Elena gasped in surprise at the sudden strange gesture. "Stefan?" she stuttered.

The man plopped her down and tilted his shades down, revealing his oak green eyes. "The one and only." He smiled lazily. Why did this all seem so familiar?

"What's with the jacket and cockiness?" Elena jumped right to it. She wasn't one for beating around the bush. She liked knowing things, and hated feeling like she didn't.

Stefan replaced the glasses. He shrugged. "Felt like a change. And what cockiness?"

Elena snorted. "Never mind." She threw a quick glance around them to make sure no one was in hearing distance. There wasn't; all the students that were around whispering and staring at Stefan. "If you were drinking blood again you'd tell me, right?" Something in her head said that he wouldn't, that instead he would feed her lies to keep her _safe._ Elena felt slightly sick.

"Of course I would." He murmured. Elena's eyes shot to his face, but those damn glasses were covering his eyes. He sounded sincere, but then again, Stefan always sounded sincere. Elena had that sick feeling again. Stefan brightened up suddenly. "You ready for school?" he asked.

Elena raised an eyebrow. Stefan excited? "I would be but I forgot my locker combination."

Stefan grinned. "I can help you with that."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Damon POV**

Damon wondered how he had gotten himself into this.

Stefan, the nerd, had Calculus first. What was the point of this anyway? He bent over his test, chewing anxiously on his pencil. The clock ticked slowly. He thought it had to be slowing down.

What the hell was a derivative? And what was with all these random letters everywhere? It didn't make any sense in Damon's head and he winced. Math had certainly changed from when he had a tutor. It wasn't his life's mission to figure out any of this crap. How could Stefan deal with all of this? Why the fuck would he want to? He dreaded going through the six more hours of the day. The only reason he was doing any of this, Elena, was only with him in lunch and with Ric.

That class was certainly going to be interesting.

Damon's mind wandered to the savage enjoyment on Stefan's face as he wrote down all his classes for Damon. Stefan thought he was the lucky one, being Damon, having nothing to do in his life but drink alcohol and chase after Elena.

Well he was going to enjoy himself too. Damon stood up.

"Screw this." Damon walked over the teacher and to his appalled eyes, ripped the test to pieces and let them fall on the desk. He smirked at the teacher's speechless expression. "Fuck math. It gets you shit in life."

Damon turned around and sat back in his seat.

Then, simultaneously, came the sound of twenty papers being ripped with shouts of defiance. Damon smirked triumphantly. This was all too…

Xxxxxxxxx

Damon thought they could've done better than five days detention. He wouldn't turn up anyway. He considered getting Stefan expelled, but decided that Stefan might do something worse in retaliation, like…he didn't even want to think about it. Now that he thought of it, he probably shouldn't have gave into his impulsive tendencies and cursed out the teacher. But…whatever. What's done is done and all that crap.

He still had three more classes including history, which was last today. Three and a half hours to survive through.

Damon doodled idly on his notebook in Latin, head resting on his hand. He already knew the basics of the language anyway ; it was crammed into his head when he was younger. Way younger. He never understood why people would want to learn a dead language anyway. Stupid humans.

"I know Mr. Salvatore could translate this sentence. " Damon raised his head from his notebook, eying the chipper teacher warily.

"Probably not." Damon muttered.

"Stefan. Da mihi quaeso virtutem ad diutius durandum." The teacher smiled encouragingly as if she knew he would answer correctly.

Damon smiled. He might as well have fun. "Umm..." he began. He honestly did not have any idea, but there were a still a couple phrases he remembered from his school years. The only ones he ever used.

"Stefan? Do you not know the answer?"

"Nulla imāgō habeō. Mea lingua latīna est mala." He grinned charmingly.

The teacher also smiled "I doubt that Mr. Salvatore."

The bell rang, a shrill annoying sound, and Damon stood up in relief.

He studied his handwritten schedule. Next was…no way. P.E. Damon grimaced. Stefan never said anything about gym. He could make it. After that were lunch, then Ric and Elena. Damon smiled at that.

But first…he had to survive through gym.

Fun.

**And that's it! I'll try to update quicker next time. Last week I was working on my little one shot (which I would love if you would read! XD ) and I was still in shock and melted in a puddle from Rose. Oh and thank you again to my reviewers! I love you!**


	5. Mistakes

**Sorry for the wait. I had extreme writer's block for a while, and then I accidently deleted my story. If you read Take Me Back, you already know this lol. Well, I'm not exactly sure about this chapter. I was in a more romantic mood while writing this, so sorry if it's not funny. Hope you enjoy anyway!**

XXXXXXXXXX

Stefan sighed happily as he crushed another bag of blood to his lips. God, this was amazing. He could drink as much of the forbidden fruit as he could ingest, with no regrets, no loss, only-only _this_. Stefan sighed as he finished the bag, tossing it to the now crowded floor. It was littered with ripped red bags. He stepped over them warily, reached for a glass of scotch, and gulped it down in one go. He grimaced as the liquid burned its way down his throat.

He could feel power building inside him. It was ticking like a time bomb, and Stefan knew that soon it would blow. He inhaled deeply, enjoying the plethora of scents that tickled his nose. He could smell the faint drift of Elena's perfume to the strong scent of Damon's cologne. He could hear clearly the quiet treading of a doe as it walked through the nearby forest.

Stefan smiled slowly as he crouched in a hunter's position. He didn't know if it was from the rush of the blood he drank or from some sort of side effect of being in Damon's body, but he wanted to kill something. To feel the last horrified moment of fear and the gush of warm blood flooding his mouth as he bit deeper…what was wrong with him?

He was out of the house in a flash and running. The cool wind whipped his face, helping clear his heated head. It was nothing at all, just a random…thought passing through his head. Too much to drink, that was it.

Stefan didn't pay any attention to where he was going, but suddenly found himself in front of Bonnie's house. Good. He could ask her to reverse this dumb spell before he ended up killing someone. Damon's body or not, he didn't need that guilt. Stefan tapped his foot impatiently as he knocked loudly and quickly on the door. There was no response, and Stefan realized that Bonnie was probably at school. He mentally envisioned himself banging his head on the wall. How could he be so stupid?

Just as he was turning away, the door creaked open revealing an exhausted looking Bonnie. Her usually caramel skin was pale and drawn and dark circles were etched under her eyes. Surprise colored her face, but anger quickly replaced it.

"You." She spat and realization dawned on Stefan once again. He was Damon. He hit his head on the wall again mentally. How could he forget such a major detail? Bonnie _hated_ Damon. Her light eyes were darkened with it.

Stefan spoke quickly. "Bonnie. I'm not Damon. I'm Stefan. Last…"

Bonnie cut him off with a snort. "Oh and I'm really Katherine . Do you think I'm stupid Damon? Blind? Now get the hell out of here before I kill you." She started to close the door but Stefan caught the edge of the door.

"Bonnie…" he began, but never got to finish as her gaze locked with is, a smug smile on her lips that made him feel anxious. Then, a thousand splintering stakes were being shoved unto his brain, and Stefan could barely gasp as his gaze went red. He doubled over and collapsed on the floor, clutching at his head, trying to find some way to lessen the agonizing pain…and just like that, it was gone, the only reminder of his pain a quickly fading headache.

Bonnie was bent over him, her lip curled into a grimace of disgust. "Pathetic." She murmured, and shut the door.

Holding his hand gingerly to his head, Stefan stood up. So that's how it felt. He groaned, wondering why Damon even fought with Bonnie anyway. Did he have a death wish?

Stefan sighed as the thoughts gathered and collected in his head. Bonnie wasn't going to listen to him. Either he would have tell Elena, which his mind immediately rejected, he'd rather not have her involved, or he would have to get Damon to do it. So Damon it was. Bonnie might listen to him. But the fact was, Damon would only do it if he wanted to. And who knew what he wanted? Stefan moaned again and pulled out his phone, as he tried not to imagine what Damon was doing in his body.

Hopefully, nothing too bad.

He scrolled to his own name in Damon's contact and frowned when he saw it wasn't there. Did his own brother not have his number? Stefan started at the beginning, wondering if he missed it. And there it was, under his girlfriend's name.

Elena's Bitch.

Stefan rolled his eyes and pressed talk.

XXXXXXXXXX

Dodgeball.

Damon smiled evilly as he bounced the ball up and down in his hands. He hefted it, and the team on the other side of the room took an involuntary step back. He found this reasonable. His target was that blonde kid, Caroline's ex. He almost felt bad for the kid, who was looking nervously at him. Probably wondering about the maniacal glint in his eye. He was sure Stefan never looked like this before. Even the coach was now leaning unconsciously forward in his seat in the bleachers.

"Careful now, Stefan." He said in a warning voice. Damon nodded once, never taking his eyes off his victim. He pulled back his arm, gave the ball one last squeeze, and whipped it forward with all his strength. The ball whizzed forward like a bullet. Matt barely had time to flinch before the rubber ball slammed into his chest, sending him flying backward into the padded wall.

Silence fell, as everyone turned to look at Damon. He smiled sheepishly. Oops.

XXXXXXXXXX

"You okay?" Damon asked, though he could really he could really care less. He wasn't dead so he was fine.

Matt winced. "Yeah I'm fine. Nothing's broken." He gave a faint smile, and Damon admired his fortitude. It was a pretty hard hit, but only because he didn't know Stefan had it in him. Damon hadn't been sure that this puffball had any strength, but he realized his mistake now. Why did he have to ruin everything he does? Stefan was perfect; he never messed anything up. Even when he was in Stefan's body he couldn't do anything right. He sighed as they made their way into the cafeteria.

Matt tensed as Caroline made her way to them.

"Hey guys." She said nervously, running a hand through her blonde hair. There was an awkward silence as Caroline and Matt stared at each other.

"Um, I have to go." Matt said suddenly. "See you later." He walked away quickly.

"Awkward." muttered Damon.

"Tell me about it." Caroline sighed. "Come on. Let's go find Elena . Bonnie's sick." Damon nodded absently, already searching the room for the dark head. He actually, ironically, did learn something today. Elena's name meant light in Latin. The Light for his dark. And he saw her. The room seemed to part for her as she walked across the cafeteria. She spotted him and smiled. Damon never heard something before that was truer than that was. He was so whipped.

"You ready to go eat?" Caroline asked impatiently.

Elena nodded and looked at Stefan confusedly. He realized he was gaping and quickly closed his mouth. God, this girl was going to be the death of him.

"How was your day?" asked Elena conversationally.

Damon rolled his eyes. "Not good."

Caroline gave him a strange look. "Yeah I heard you led a 'we don't need no education' rebellion in math. And apparently you blew up the chem lab."

Elena laughed, but sobered when she saw the serious look on Damon's face. "I didn't blow up the whole lab…" he muttered.

They sat on a picnic table outside. Damon felt his pocket vibrate and pulled out Stefan's phone. 'Damon' was calling. He debated pressing the ignore button. It was probably some depressing, 'it's all up to you now Damon!' news. He was sure Stefan wasn't calling just to say hi. Elena noticed all of this.

"What does Damon want now?" she asked crossly. What? Did he always ask for things? He wasn't that selfish.

"Might as well see." He sighed.

He got up and pressed the talk button. "Yello." He drawled. "Sexy here. Oh wait. I'm you. Never mind."

"Shut up Damon, for once in your life." The voice was almost like a growl.

"Jeez. Someone woke up…"

"SHUT UP!"

And Damon, for once in his life, shut up.

"Look, I went to Bonnie to get her to reverse the spell. But she won't listen to me because I'm you. So I need you to talk to her for me. She'd listen to me."

Damon grinned slowly. "Yelling at me isn't exactly the way to get me to do what you want."

"So what, you want to be trapped as me forever? You hate me."

"Yes, but I love Elena. And as you, I can get whatever I want."

There was tense silence on the other end. "You…what?"

Shit. Damon realized his mistake immediately. He just told his brother that he loved his girlfriend. Not good. "What what?" he asked, deciding to pretend that it never happened.

"You just said that…that…nevermind." Damon breathed a silent sigh of relief. It was so Stefan to tuck things away rather than face the truth.

"Yeah so I'm just going to enjoy being you for as long as I want and do whatever I want because that's how I am, Stefan."

"But…"

"Buh bye now." Damon hung up the phone, feeling strange in the stomach. Not exactly the most pleasant conversation in the world.

As he walked back to the lunch table this feeling of discomfort escalated. Elena watched him worriedly.

"What'd he say?" Damon tried to put on a mask of amusement, but he was sure Elena's bright brown eyes could see right through it.

"Just being Damon." He sighed. Elena looked like she was about to press for more, so Damon interrupted her. "You wanna go out after school today?"

Elena blinked, clearly thrown off her track. "Go…out?" Caroline chuckled.

"Yeah, you know, what boyfriend and girlfriend usually do for fun."

"I thought we agreed that we couldn't do that." She said.

Damon clenched his jaw. If Elena was his, he'd take her everywhere, let her see anything. Stefan didn't deserve her. But then again, he thought laconically, neither did he.

"Change of plans."

Elena narrowed her eyes, but then smiled. "Where do you want to go?"

"It's a surprise." Damon gave her a mysterious smile and she laughed with Caroline. Truth was, he had no idea.

XXXXXXXXX

**Alright amazing reviewers! Where would you like Damon to take Elena for a date? Because I can't think of anything haha. Thanks**!


	6. Getting Soft

_So what did Damon want?_

Damon stared at the paper for a while, pondering how best to answer it. He could feel Elena's stare boring holes in his head as he studied the note. Well, might as well mess with her, he thought.

**That's all you ever talk about anymore. Damon, Damon, Damon. I'm tired of it. Is there something between you two? Tell the truth.**

He was still smirking as he handed it to the person next to him, who in turn gave it to Elena. He watched as she read his bold calligraphy and as her jaw dropped. He snorted. Elena read it again and clenched her pen. When she wrote, it was with anger. Damon avoided her gaze as she passed the note back to him, pretending to be absorbed in Alaric's lecture on World War II. It was strange seeing the guy teach. This was the man he killed, drank with, and stood by while fighting a house of angry vampires. He was probably the closest thing he had to a friend in this town. The note flew on his desk, and Damon excitedly unfolded it. He didn't know why he was excited. Even if Elena did feel something for him, she wouldn't admit it in a note to Stefan.

_Stefan, you know I hate him. He killed my brother__. And it doesn't matter that I still ca- __So yes, there is something between us. Hate. I thought you trusted me… ?_

Damon sighed as he read her angry jagged writing. It wasn't like he expected anything else.

**Calm down. I was just being jealous because most girls are attracted by him ****and his beautiful body ****and ignore me. It's strange to me that you're not.**

_Why would any girl be attracted to him? He's an asshole. And I love you Stefan. Don't ever think otherwise. Elena + Stefan forever! 3 _

This was counterproductive, Damon thought as he read the note. It was completely depressing him.

"Stefan? Elena? Do we have a problem?" Damon looked into the slightly amused eyes of Alaric.

"No we're fine, Ric. I mean Alaric. I mean Mr. Saltzman." Damon smiled brightly and folded his hands. Alaric gave Damon a confused look. "Note please. And I'd like to see you two after school."

Damon sighed and reluctantly handed him the letter. Elena's eyes widened in embarrassment as Alaric read the note. Alaric's brow furrowed in concentration and worry. "So…the Americans moved onto…" He folded the note and put in his back pocket.

Damon doodled idly again on his notebook. The class passed away quickly, and Damon smiled in relief as the final bell rang_. Hah!_ He thought. _That was actually pretty easy. And I only have 3 detentions… _He closed his notebook quicky, hoping no one saw his doodles of Elena's name…

He gave Elena a small smile as they stood up and walked to Alaric. He was straightening up papers as they approached, and barely looked up at the sound of their footsteps.

"Um…" Elena began, but Alaric cut her off.

"Look, I know that I'm not exactly your average teacher," He said. Damon snorted. "But that doesn't give you permission to walk all over me in class."

"I'm sorry." Elena said. "Its just-Stefan and I…Um…well you see, Damon…uh…"

"Stefan why don't you go on ahead? I want to talk Elena alone."

Damon frowned. What did this teacher want? Was it about the note? Him? He smirked at that thought. "Sure. I'll meet you at your locker, Elena." He leisurely exited the room, closed the door and pressed his ear to the cool wood. Damn these bunny senses! He couldn't hear a word. With a frustrated groan, he stormed down the school hallway, ruthlessly slamming any startled freshman out of his way.

XXXXXXXXXX

Stefan sat on the porch of Bonnie's house, head buried in his hands.

"Damon? What are you doing here?" Stefan looked up and met Caroline's curious and disgusted eyes, her hands on her hips. Stefan sighed silently. He was completely tired of everyone hating him.

"Just…sitting." He said, debating internally whether to tell Caroline about the whole switching thing. He liked and trusted her, but he knew she didn't feel the same for Damon.

"On Bonnie's porch?" Caroline pursued carefully and with slight trepidation. With a sinking feeling, Stefan realized she was scared of him. Her eyes flicked from him to the door, as if weighing her chances if she could make it without any trouble. He also noticed she was carrying a small package. Soup.

"Care, there's something I need to tell you…"

XXXXXXXXXX

"Are you going to tell me where we're going yet?"

"You know the whole point of a surprise is that I don't tell you." Damon said, as he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. The radio played softly in the background.

Elena slumped in her seat, but brightened up suddenly. "Oh! I love this song." She closed her eyes happily. Damon began to hum it, and she opened her eyes in surprise.

"Are you…humming?" she asked, awed.

Damon gave her a charming smile. "Maybe…" Elena gave him a questioning look, but he left it at that.

XXXXXXXXXX

"This isn't exactly what I imagined."

"Me either." Damon said, a big grin on his face. He just drove around until he found an interesting building. He was excited, for he hadn't been on a date in more than a hundred years. He had no idea what to do. He only picked out a girl, brought her somewhere secluded, and fed from her along with…other things. But Elena was ordinary girl. He wanted her, and for more than a one nighter. Far more than that.

Elena looked around, doubt on her face. "An arcade? Aren't we a little old for that?"

"Technically, I'm old enough to be dead twice over."

Elena chuckled. "Whatever. We'll stay a little bit. I kinda always wanted to do this. Jeremy used to come here all the time, and I only came to drag him back home." Damon smiled. He loved the light in her eyes. It was something he didn't see much of these days.

"Well what are you waiting for? Let's go!" They laughed, and holding hands, ran into the crowd.

XXXXXXXXXX

It was the most fun Elena had in a long time. She had no idea Stefan could be this…amazing. She was having the time of her life. It was certainly not the nice long romantic date she had imagined. But in some ways this was better for her.

Stefan seemed nervous at first, which Elena found absolutely adorable, but a little strange. He knew what he was doing however. Especially at skeeball.

Elena had rolled the ball, but it had flopped pathetically in the no point zone. Stefan chuckled at her.

"Like you could do better." She said, arms crossed.

"Watch me." Stefan said, eyebrows raised, and a smirk on his face, quickly snapped the ball up the ramp. It landed elegantly in the highest point hole, and he gave Elena a knowing look as the tickets shot out of the slot.

"Cheater." Elena pouted. It was pretty dumb to challenge a vampire . "I bet I could beat you at racing."

"You're on."

After they were done, they turned in their humongous pile of tickets and traded it in for a big black wolf, which Stefan graciously handed to Elena. "Here you go m' lady."

Elena curtsied. "Why thank you Mr. Salvatore." Their eyes met and they both burst out into laughter. Elena felt amazing, like she was a little kid again. She hugged the wolf closer. "Well, tonight was fun…" she said.

"Woah. Wait a sec. We're not done yet."

Elena brightened up instantly. "Really?"

"Yep. You hungry?" Elena nodded. "Well let's go somewhere special."

XXXXXXXXXX

Damon towed Elena into the bar, secretly delighting in the surprise, pleasure and confusion that flashed across her face. "Are we at a bar?" she asked, throwing him an absolutely bewildered look. He nodded back eagerly.

"Yeah. I wanted a drink." Elena's face got even more confused and Damon mentally cursed himself. Damn it! It was so easy to be himself around Elena, but she was smart, and he had to be careful. In his back pocket, his phone buzzed again, but Damon ignored it. He didn't want to talk to Brood pants right now. It would only remind him who he really was. What he didn't have. He just wanted to have this one night with Elena. One night, for he knew he would never have her again.

The bar was one of his favorites. Mostly because it was loud enough to block any thoughts from his head. Second because it had the best drinks in town. He led Elena through the dancing throng and to a table in the darker corners of the restaurant. Elena was still eyeing him strangely, and he mentally prepared himself for the barrage of questions sure to come. But Elena stayed silent.

The waitress came quickly and they ordered food. Suddenly Damon felt lightheaded. The noise faded around him, dying away except for one single heartbeat and fast rush of blood through veins. Damon breathed in, and took in the most exquisite scent he had ever known. Without thinking, he stood up and let his legs carry himself to the source of this delectable, intoxicating scent. He ignored Elena's confused calls.

He came to a stop in front of a woman, tears running in rivers down her cheeks. She was cradling her wrist, in which a steady stream of blood was flowing down, dripping into her barely there white blouse.

Blood.

Damon brought his hand to his mouth. He could feel his fangs slowly extending, poking slightly into his bottom lip. His eyes were glued to a single drop of a perfect drop of red blood. Time seemed to slow as he followed it as it slowly dropped onto her shirt. He never wanted blood more in his life. He could barely hear a small voice in the back of his head, warning him that it wouldn't be right to grab this woman, sink his fangs into her neck, and drain her dry. But he didn't just want this. He needed this. He slowly leaned in…

"Stefan! Stefan, no!" Her small angelic voice floated quietly over the din, but Damon heard it as loud as if she were screaming in his ear.

He jerked back, nearly stumbling into Elena's arms. "Stefan…why?" she whispered, stroking his hair carefully.

Damon sighed slowly. "I'm sorry. I wouldn't have done it." He looked carefully into her eyes, and he could've sworn he saw a deep annoyance. But before he was sure, it was gone.

They stared at each other. Slowly in the background, soft music drifted out. The dance floor cleared, and a soft hush fell over the bar. "Can I have this dance?" Damon asked before he could stop himself, his voice soft and husky.

Elena watched him, indecision on her face. "I thought you hated dancing." She said simply.

"Not with you."

Elena cocked her head, and with a slight smile, offered her arm. He hooked it with his, and fought back the raging memories.

They reached the dance floor and Damon held her carefully, gingerly. And slowly, they began to sway.

As they danced, Damon felt a funny feeling go through him. A warm feeling. Without thinking he began to whisper the words to the song.

"I can be your hero baby. I can kiss away the pain, oh yeah. I will stand by you forever. You can take my breath away…" In the dim red light, Elena's eyes seemed to shine brighter. Without a word, she leaned her head on Damon's shoulder, causing him to stiffen. They stopped swaying, standing quietly as the last lingering notes slowly faded away.

In Damon's back pocket, his phone buzzed again. He quickly jerked out of his haze.

What was happening to him? He was turning into a sap, singing songs as they slowly danced…Maybe…maybe… and then it hit him.

He was turning into Stefan.

XXXXXXXXXX

Or is he? Mwahahaha. Aaah I lovee that song. And Enrique…lol. Well, seems like my story is just about wrapping up. Got only a few chapters left. Oh! Book reference in here! Anyone catch it? Tell me! I'd also like to thank all my wonderful reviews last chapter. They made me laugh, especially EtherealDemon's! I know right? haha. Anyway, review and tell me what you thought. Love ya!

Oh! Before I forget the latin was… teacher: give me the strength to move on. Damon: I have no idea. My latin is bad.

Yeah…mine is too so don't kill me if I'm wrong lol.


	7. Passion and Nothing

"So…what you're trying to tell me-ha- is that you went to this new –heh-Chinese restaurant and Bonnie read this fortune cookie like-like Freaky Friday and you and D-Damon switched places. And right-hah- now, you're not really-ha- Damon, but really Stefan trapped in his body."

Stefan stared stone faced at Caroline, who was doubled over in laughter. "Yeah that's pretty much it." He said.

Caroline straightened up and wiped elegantly under her eyes. "Oh. You're serious." She said. Stefan nodded grimly. "Well, I guess anything is possible nowadays. We're probably going to have to fight off a horde of leprechauns next." Stefan's mouth quirked. "But how can I tell that you're really Stefan, and this isn't some huge prank to trick a dumb blonde?"

"Well…remember when at the carnival, I went with you in the bathroom after…everything, and I promised that I won't let anything happen to you?"

Caroline's face softened. "It is you."

They were both interrupted by the sound of the door opening, once again revealing a very confused Bonnie, a bag slung over her shoulder like she was about to leave. "What's going on here?" she asked.

Stefan looked at Caroline who pulled at her hair nervously. "Well...you see..."

Bonnie lifted her chin slightly and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Don't worry Caroline. I'll take care of it." she said with determination.

Stefan only had enough time to arrange his face into one of horror before it hit. The pain was more intense this time. Stefan fell to the floor, his body convulsing in pain."Bon- nie!" he cried painfully.

Caroline put her soup on the floor and placed her hands on Bonnie's shoulders, shaking her slightly. "Stop! It's really Stefan, Bon!" Confusion once again came upon Bonnie's face and she released Stefan, who let out a big sigh and stretched out on the floor and held his head.

"What?" Bonnie asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah." Stefan breathed. "I'm Stefan."

A tense silence followed as everyone stared at each other. A couple minutes, or maybe seconds, later, Caroline broke the silence. "I know it sounds strange, but it's true." she said quietly.

"I was thinking that the fortune cookie you read last night was maybe a spell." Stefan added quietly from the floor.

Bonnie stared at Stefan thoughtfully and bit her lip. "That is possible...Well I believe you Caroline. But even then why should I fix it?"

Stefan sat up, still methodically massaging his head. "For Elena." he said. "And for me. Please. I really can't take another day like this. As...him. I really need to be myself again. And who knows what Damon is doing to Elena..." He shuddered. Stefan never thought he would have to resort to begging, but he'd go on his knees if he had to.

Bonnie frowned. "Elena doesn't know?" she asked. Stefan flinched.

"I don't think she needs any more stress..." he explained, twitching nervously.

Bonnie narrowed her eyes. "Don't you think she'll want to know that it's actually Damon she's screwing?" she said, her voice rising in anger. Stefan twitched again. "What were you thinking?"

"I...I..." Stefan stuttered, clearly taken aback.

"Bonnie, calm down. I think Stefan trusts and knows his brother." Caroline said. Stefan threw her a thankful look.

Bonnie sighed. "Fine. I'll try to fix this. But only for Elena." She sighed, suddenly looking exhausted. Stefan felt a twinge of guilt. "I'm going to find the fortune. Be right back." She disappeared into the house.

"Thanks for sticking up for me." Stefan said quietly.

"Why wouldn't I?" Caroline said with a smile. "Here. Let's get you off this floor." She held out her hand and Stefan gratefully took it. She pulled up and Stefan was yanked up suddenly and quickly. He stumbled into Caroline, pushing her against the wall next to the door. The two laughed, but it quickly died when Stefan realized how close he was to the beautiful blonde. Without thinking his eyes flicked to her lips. The sweet smell of her perfume surrounded him and he unconsciously leaned forward, with full intent of capturing those lips with his own. Caroline's eyes fluttered with indecision before narrowing with determination.

She put a small white hand on his chest, stopping him. "No, Stefan. Elena." That name sent a shock through his body. He still wanted to growl 'I don't care!' and kiss her anyway. Damn it, he wanted it. He could feel the connection between the two, stronger than…anything. What the hell was wrong with him? Was it an effect from being in Damon's body, taking on his whole 'if I want it, I take it' policy? But sense and reality set in and he knew he couldn't. Weight seemed to settle back between his shoulders as he backed up, freeing Caroline. "Plus," she added, her face suddenly lighting up with her always optimistic grin. "You're Damon. So…ew. Been there done that." She wrinkled her nose. Stefan grinned. She was like his personal sun, and he could feel her warming him even now.

The door swung open cheerfully. "Ok so I think we should go back to the restaurant. This spell is no coincidence."Bonnie said with authority, studying a little white slip of paper in her hand.

"_Four different souls and four different destinies._

_Denial could lead to eternal love or heartbreak._

_Be not afraid in what you do,_

_Love who's right or you could be trapped evermore."_

She read aloud. "What the hell could that mean?"

Stefan blinked hard. He had a couple ideas, and none of them seemed good. "Um...yeah, we should go." his voice was strangely husky and unused sounding. "But I think we should wait for Damon."

"Okay...where is he?" Bonnie asked.

Stefan stared at the dark sky, suddenly worried. "I dont know..."

XXXXXXXXXX

Damon was currently grinding on Elena, both of them totally and utterly drunk.

They swayed on the dance floor, loudly singing the song Low. Elena downed some drink Damon was too drunk to focus enough to identify. "I thought you didn't dance or drink cause…you were like boring. Or like…you can't dance. Damon can dance waaaay better." She slurred. Damon smiled. This all brought back pleasant memories of Georgia. And being Stefan, his alcohol tolerance was extremely low.

"Oh, I can dance." He said with a cocky smile. He cleared a circle on the throbbing dance floor. And, with a dramatic grin, began to break dance. The crowd gaped as he spun on his head, did a handstand, and a no hand back flip. He ended with a sudden split, causing the crowd to go wild. Elena, awestruck, recorded the whole thing on her phone. He lazily walked back up to her, guys clapping his back and girls giggling at him. He grabbed Elena's hips.

"Your turn." He whispered.

"No thank you, Steffi." She laughed, tapping his nose.

"I think you owe me an apology."

"In your dreams." She said, giving him a playful shove. "Come on, I neeeed another drink." Damon eagerly went after her. Then, his phone vibrated again.

Reason seemed to rush back to him and he winced. He had to get Elena out of here. What time was it anyway? He grabbed Elena and pulled her the other way. "Let's get out of here. It's getting late."

"But whyyyy? I don't wanna go." Elena whined. "You're not supposed to drink and drive anyway." She added as they got into Stefan's car.

"Vampires don't get drunk." Damon said. He tried to insert the key into the ignition and missed three times. "I think…"

They drove in silence, the only sound Elena's humming. Damon unconsciously pressed on the accelerator, his mind wandering and his vision blurring. Where was he going again?

"What's wrong with you today?" Elena shot out suddenly. "If I didn't know better I'd say you're turning into...Stefan look out!" Damon's eyes whipped back to the road, and suddenly jerked the car to the side. The car swerved, violently spinning . Elena screamed, and Damon threw himself over her as the car jolted to a stop with a sickening crunch. He breathed in relief when Elena said she was fine. The two carefully got out of the popping car and Damon winced at the sight. Stefan's little car's front was completely smashed into a large oak.

"Oopsies." Damon said, swaying slightly. "Stefan is not gonna like this."

Elena cocked her head. "Aren't you Stefan?" she asked quizzically.

"Oh…um I talk in third person when I'm upset." He said. Elena nodded, drunk enough to buy it. "Stefan thinks we should call a tow."

"Okay." She agreed.

Damon called quickly. As he was talking he saw his reason for swerving: A bunny. Figures. "So…what do you want to do? Call Goldie Locks, Sabrina, Cool Aunt, Mr. Buffy, or Stef- Damon for a ride? Or walk to the boarding house with me?" Crap. It was hard to not use his sarcastic jokes.

Elena didn't seem to notice as she ran a hand through her hair. "I'll walk. I don't feel like talking to any of them." Damon nodded, glad with her choice.

The two set off at the night. It was silent at first, both of them enjoying the cool wind that helped clear their heads. "It's nice out." Damon commented without thinking.

"It is." Elena said, throwing him such a beautiful smile that Damon almost hurt. He knew somehow that Stefan found a way to reverse what happened. So this would be the last time that Elena would look at him without revulsion or hate in those big brown eyes. He savored every second of it. They reached the boarding house when Elena suddenly grabbed his arms, holding him in place.

"You really are different tonight." She said, and Damon held his breath. "I like it." He exhaled silently.

He felt pressure on the back of his neck and realized that Elena had wrapped her arms around his neck, and was slowly pulling him down. To her. Her eyes were fluttering close. With a jolt, Damon realized she wanted to kiss.

What now?

His first urge was to laugh hysterically. His second to grab her and carry her up to his bedroom. Neither were plausible.

He had dreamed of this moment, and now that it was happening, it was surreal. He didn't even care that he was really Stefan. A voice appeared in his head. _Just kiss her_, it taunted. _No one will know._ _This is your only chance_. But another voice rose against it, one that sounded suspiciously like Stefan. _Stefan trusts you. If he or Elena found out…_

Damon shook his head swiftly. It was just one kiss. And wasn't this how he, Damon Salvatore, lived his life? Taking what he wanted with no regrets? At one time it wasn't like that, but he just didn't care. He needed this.

He slowly leaned forward, and ever so softly, brushed his lips with hers.

Nothing.

No flames burning through him, no electricity, no redeeming passion. Nothing. He pressed his lips harder against hers, desperate to feel something rather than this plain familiarity. Nothing.

He pulled back, and Elena made a small sigh. Not one of contentment or happiness, but one of disappointment. He felt it too. So this was what it was like for Stefan to kiss Elena. It was…boring. Like routine.

He opened the door, and the two went in. At the fireplace, a chair suddenly swung around, revealing a very pissed off Stefan.

"Where have you been D- Stefan?" he growled, jumping off the chair.

Damon chuckled as Stefan tapped his foot impatiently. " Sorry mommy. I just lost track of the time. Did I pass my curfew?"Stefan clenched his jaw, and Damon laughed. "Seriously. All you need is a pink fluffy robe and matching slippers and you'd be perfect."

His eyes widened when Elena came through the door. "Elena! My poor little love! Are you alright?" He rushed forward and grabbed her, studying her. "Did he hurt you? If he did I swear…"

Elena jerked away from him, looking extremely alarmed. "Damon. Now is not the time to be sarcastic." She looked at Damon. "Mind if I stay here tonight?"

Stefan's head jerked up. "Oh no you aren't." he practically yelled. Elena 's eyes widened.

"He's my boyfriend. I can do whatever I want with him, Damon." Elena shot back. Damon flinched. He hoped Elena was too drunk to want to do anything besides sleeping. He was sure Stefan would jam a stake through his heart. "Stefan, why don't you go upstairs? I want to talk to Damon. Alone."

Stefan looked horrified and turned to Damon for help. Damon shrugged and mouthed "Be an ass," before retreating up the stairs.

Elena took a step towards Stefan, and he resisted the urge to take a step back. Now that he and Elena were alone, he felt…strange. Almost hot and uncomfortable. Instead, he sat down on the couch, and Elena sat next to him. Butterflies were fluttering in his stomach. What was wrong with him? He never felt this way around Elena. "Damon…I've been thinking for a while, and…there's something I want to you."

Uh-oh. This did not sound good. "What is it sweethear-" Be an ass. "I mean bitch?"

Elena's eyes widened. "What?"

Ok, maybe he was being too much of an ass. "I said itch. Got one…hehe." He scratched at his arm sheepishly.

Elena rolled her eyes and steadied herself. "Damon…I forgive you."

Stefan blinked, confusion washing over him. "What?" he croaked.

"For…" she swallowed hard. "Killing Jeremy."

Stefan suddenly felt sick. "Why?"

"Stefan told me how…what Katherine said. That she only loved Stefan. And how I said the same exact thing and you…just snapped."

What the hell was going on? Stefan wanted to say something, but he found his voice was gone. That was what happened? No. How could she forgive him so easily?

"I understand." She said quietly. "I don't take back what I said…it is the truth…." As she was talking, Stefan saw something that made his heart go cold. He knew his girlfriend. He knew when she was tired or upset, or when she wanted to be alone. Right now, she was lying. Stefan could see it clearly as she averted her eyes and pulled nervously on her hair. Lies.

"I miss you being my friend. And...I'm probably going to be sticking around for a while, and I'd rather not fight the whole time. I'm sorry." She said finally, giving his knee a gentle squeeze. Stefan felt fire flare up from it. It was Damon's body reacting around Elena he decided. He never felt like that. He watched as Elena walked away. He sat there for what seemed years, absorbing the information and putting pieces together.

After all his thinking, one thought stood clear in his mind: He had to talk to Damon. Stefan quickly shot upstairs and quietly entered his own room. There he found Damon and Elena, both thankfully dressed, curled up together. He watched his girlfriend sleep and felt a pang of guilt. They both looked peaceful, and what he had to say would change everything.

He backed out of the room and climbed onto Damon's bed, too alert to even close his eyes.

Maybe tomorrow.

XXXXXXXXXX

**Well, sorry. Crazy holiday time+ Cracked laptop + slow typing skills=slow update. Haha. Hope this chapter made up for it. I'm kinda nervous about it, but it's one of my favorites so far. It was also extremely hard to write, and I wasn't even sure I wanted to put in the kisses or drunk scene. I looked at my fortune and I was like, what the heck is that supposed to mean? I don't even really remember….lol! Thanks and review!**

**Happy Thursday! sighhh...**


	8. Ric Knows

Stefan was awakened by the sound of his phone ringing. He yawned loudly; he hadn't slept much last night. He spent the most of it walking over to his room and making sure nothing was going on, but both Damon and Elena were completely knocked out, both tangled with each other on the sheets with mouths wide open. Stefan couldn't help but smile. But then there was the ultimate question: what exactly did they do last night? Stefan found himself not wanting to know.

Another thing that kept him awake was his own thoughts. Guilt still plagued him about that near-kiss. Guilt, not that he almost betrayed his girlfriend, but by how much he wanted it. And then came the talk with Elena last night. He thought that she seemed way too comfortable just baring her soul out to Damon. He wished he could be angry at Damon for manipulating his girlfriend (something in his damn noble self told him that was wrong, but he stubbornly refused to listen to it) but he couldn't. Should he tell her about the swap? But his brain quickly rejected that idea now. It was too late for that now. The damage was done, and she would only be angrier than ever. He hoped Bonnie would be able to fix this today, and soon everything could be all right again, with him in Elena's arms and Damon alone and hated. God, there came the guilt again.

He stumbled out of bed, still fully dressed, and made a wild grab for Damon's phone. Apparently Sabrina the teenage bitch was calling. Stefan wondered if there was a contact on his phone that wasn't a bitch.

"Hello?" he mumbled.

"…Stefan?" the voice asked cautiously.

"Yes, this is he." he said politely. "Bonnie?"

He heard a sigh of relief. "Yeah. Are you…with Damon?"

"He's asleep."

"Well wake him up. Caroline and I will meet you there at 12. It's 10:30 now."

Stefan groaned. Thank goodness it was Saturday. "Okay. See you there."

She hung up. "Bye?" Stefan said to the empty line. He too hung up. "Humans." He muttered. He missed the good ol' days.

Stefan walked back to his room and frowned at the sleeping Damon. He shook him slightly, not wanting to wake up Elena. "Damon. Damon. Damon!"

"Damon…" sighed Elena, causing him to freeze. Damon opened one sleepy eye and shut it again at the sight of Stefan.

"Go away." He groaned, throwing a pillow at him. "I'm busy."

Stefan fumed. He was pissed now, maybe from Elena's sleep talk, maybe from being stuck in Damon's body, maybe from all the shit that was being piled on his head. "Get up Damon, or…"

Damon only snuggled closer to Elena, slinging an arm around her waist. Elena frowned in her sleep, and leaned away from Stefan's body. "Five more minutes…" he mumbled.

That was it. "Fine then, Damon. You asked for it." Stefan smiled a deadly grin.

XXXXXXXXXX

"WHAT THE HELL?" Damon sputtered. Elena jerked up too, confusion on her face. Stefan smirked as her swung the bucket back and forth, now emptied of its contents: ice cold water. Laughing cruelly, Stefan jerked out of the way of an enraged, wet, and shivering Damon.

"Oh, look who's awake now." He taunted. It felt good. He didn't even care that he woke Elena up, or soaked his own sheets.

"I'm going to kill you." Damon muttered. To his delight, Elena was laughing, doubled over on the bed as she rung out her hair. "You know what, I still love you brother." He said, taking a step towards Stefan. "Come here. Let me give you a hug."

"Get away from me!" The two shot away, and Elena crawled out of bed, still laughing. She could still hear the brothers running and bickering somewhere in the house.

"I refuse to participate in this horribly cliché moment!" yelled Stefan's angry voice.

"But I wuve you!" came Damon.

"I swear I'll lock you in the basement! Don't think I…OH COME ON!"

Elena chuckled, but something felt…off. She should be happy. Her boyfriend took her on one of the best nights of her life, and she just reconciled with Damon. Everything was perfect, so why wasn't she happy? Elena frowned and smoothed out her slightly wet clothes. She would spend forever with Stefan, and the two would get married, and be happy, and do everything and anything, just because they could. And Damon…Damon…he would be the best man, and maybe one day…they'd have some crazy double date with his latest fling…and he'd make fun of them for being an old married couple…and then he'd disappear into the night with that signature smirk…and Elena would watch him, never knowing what could've been…

Elena felt sick. She put a hand to her face, and was surprised to find that her fingers were wet, but not from the water Damon splashed on her. She was crying. What was wrong with her? She blinked and suddenly Damon and Stefan were back, both flushed. Stefan looked smug, while, Damon, now wet, looked angry.

"Anyway, me and um, Stefan are going out to…uh do some brotherly bonding." Damon said. Stefan raised his eyebrows at Damon, who gave him a big smile. At one time, Elena might've questioned this, but she found herself not caring, and unable to look Damon in the eye.

"Um…sure guys. Have fun, I guess. Do you mind dropping me off at home?" she said, studying a dark spot on the wood. They both agreed and glared at each other. Elena sighed and exited the room, feeling more depressed than she'd ever admit.

XXXXXXXXXX

EPOV

Elena watched as Stefan walked to the Chevy, frowning secretly to herself. Damon followed close behind him, but she refused to look his way. She wondered why he was being so quiet, not even making snarky comments on driving 'their' girlfriend home or crowding her annoyingly or even waggling his eyebrows suggestively. Maybe what she said last night changed him. Elena felt a qualm at this. She hoped she wasn't leading him or anything like that. They were just friends.

But then, Alaric's words came rushing back to her.

_Elena looked at Alaric nervously as Stefan went out of the room. In a normal world, the most she could expect from her own teacher was that she was failing the class. She almost wished for that now. But nothing was normal about her life, and she knew, with dread, that it had something to do with the supernatural. From outside the now closed door, she heard a loud crash and an indignant "Hey!"_

_Alaric shifted his attention from her note to her face. "So…" she started nervously. "What do you want?"_

"_It's about Damon." He said quietly. Elena tensed immediately._

"_What about him?" she asked through clenched teeth. _

_Alaric looked terribly uncomfortable. "Well…um…I know I have no place to say anything about your relationships or anything…especially as your teacher." He chuckled awkwardly, but it did nothing to relieve the tension settling around her._

"_Where are you going with this?" she asked cautiously._

_Alaric leaned back in his chair. "Well…um…look, Damon's a good guy." Elena opened her mouth, but he continued on. "And…yeah, I know that he killed me, and is a dick…and lied to me, and screwed and killed my wife, and always seems to…okay that's not the point."_

"_Then what is the point?" Elena asked, looking at the door and silently wishing Stefan was here with her._

"_The point is…I think you should give Damon a chance."_

_Elena's mouth popped open, "What?" she gasped, her face frozen in angry surprise._

_Ric flinched. "I'm not saying you should dump Stefan and throw yourself in his arms. I just think you should try to be his friend again." Elena stared at him, still speechless. "The guy needs you more than you know. And… I see more than you think you I do. Like when we went to rescue Stefan from the tomb vamps."Elena's mind flashed back to another time when she was in this classroom with Alaric and Damon. Elena had pulled out a vervain dart in her fevered attempt to save Stefan. Damon, however, had no intention of her doing anything, which only frustrated her more._

"_This is Stefan we're talking about .You don't understand." She had argued._

"_Oh, I understand, I understand. He's the reason you live. His love lifts you up where you belong. I get it." His mocking tone had almost pushed Elena over the edge._

"_Can you not joke around for like, two seconds?" she had asked, tone laden with as much annoyance as she could inject into it._

"_I can't protect you, Elena. I don't know how many vampires there are in there." Damon snapped his fingers tartly. "That's how long it takes you to get your head ripped off. I have to be able to get in and get out. I can't be distracted by your safety. Or this will end up as a bloodbath that none of us walk away from. Including Stefan." Elena looked down, breathing hard."I know. I get it." He said. Alaric looked on. "I understand." He whispered._

_Alaric had taken a deep breath. "If we're going to go, let's go." He said suddenly. Elena had forgotten he was even there. The two men left, leaving her to her confusing thoughts._

_Alaric's voice brought her back to the present. "And that…um dance with him at the Miss Mystic Falls pageant." He continued, blushing a little._

_Elena blushed too. She hadn't realized he had seen her. But, on the other hand, she hadn't paid attention to anything but Damon that dance. Everything but he and those wild blue eyes had seemed to fade away._

"_I'm not going to ask you why you danced with him and not Stefan. But I do know Jeremy's alive, and…maybe you should forgive him. He's a better person around you." _

_Elena stared at him as he fell silent. "Is that all?" she asked tersely. _

_Alaric nodded a little, seeming relieved. "Yep. That's it."_

"_Well then, I'll be going. I have a date. With _Stefan_." She turned on her heel and started to leave._

"_Elena wait." He called. Elena reluctantly turned. "I'm your teacher. I can fail you, you know."_

_Despite everything, Elena smiled. "I'll think about it." She said. They shared another smile before Elena left to meet up with Stefan._

Elena sighed at the memory, hoping she did the right thing.

But it was too quiet. She never thought she'd say this, but she was actually kind of missing Damon's sarcastic, annoying, and secretly funny quips.

Stefan yanked open the door of the driver's seat, causing Elena to jerk out of her musings.

"What are you doing?" Damon asked. What was Stefan doing? Did he have a death wish by driving Damon's car? But, strangely enough, Damon didn't even sound angry, nor was Stefan dead. He sounded merely confused and slightly amused.

"Yeah…what are you doing?" Elena added.

Stefan also looked confused. "Getting in my car to drive." He said.

Damon gave him a crucial, pointed look. "That's not your car _Stefan_."

"What the hell are you talking about? Of course it's my….oh."

Elena cocked her head. She wondered if it was her hangover acting up. The two brothers stared at each other. "Why can't we drive Stefan's car?" Damon asked. Elena made a face while Stefan's eyes widened. "What happened?"

"Well…we kinda crashed it in a tree and…" Elena began.

"WHAT?" Damon screamed, causing Elena to jump in alarm. "YOU FUCKING CRASHED MY-"

"Damon…" Stefan warned.

Damon clenched his hands into fists. "I mean…what a shame."

"Okay then." Elena said slowly. "Um…Stefan are you going to let Damon drive or what?" she asked.

Stefan seemed to be in pain. Damon smiled suddenly. "Yeah Stefan. Let me drive _my_ car." He pushed Stefan out of the way.

"Oh…yes. You can…drive…your car." Stefan muttered. Damon got in the driver's seat and Elena opened the passenger door.

"What are you doing?" Damon asked.

"Um…getting in the car…" she said.

"Next to me? No. Go sit in the back." He said angrily.

Elena stared at him and sat down indignantly. "I'll sit where I want. What's your problem?"

"Yeah what is your problem? Elena can sit up there if she wants." Stefan added from outside.

"No she can't. She hates me." Damon said.

"I don't hate…"

"I think she likes you fine." Stefan taunted.

"Yeah but…"

"Fine! I'll sit in the back!" Elena yelled. She exited the car and yanked the door open violently.

"Now look at what you did." Stefan mumbled with a laugh.

"I'm going to kill you later." Damon muttered back.

Elena sighed loudly and dramatically from the backseat, shutting the two up. Damon started the car and backed out onto the road. The silence in the car was tense.

Something was bugging Elena, but she didn't know what. Her head hurt too much to think about it.

What the hell was going on?

XXXXXXXXXX

After they dropped a silent Elena off, Damon turned to Stefan. "So…" he said. "What are we doing? If it really is brotherly bonding I'm jumping out of the car."

Stefan smiled as he turned a corner. "We're going back to the restaurant with Bonnie and Caroline to find out what happened-is happening- to us."

"Thank God." Damon sighed. "It's so tiring being all good and thoughtful."

Stefan raised his eyebrows and looked over at Damon. "And you're not?"

"Keep your eyes on the road." Damon said. "If you get one scratch on my car…"

"Then we'll still not be even on you crashing my car." Stefan finished. Damon rolled his eyes. "Damon! It was a vintage car! It even got me some brownie points with Matt! And me and Elena…"

"Ew. I don't want to know little brother. And I don't want to know about your gay relationship with Matt either."

It was Stefan's turn to roll his eyes. "Whatever. We're here."

"Cross your fingers." Damon mumbled as they got out of the car. The two shared a wry smile and entered the restaurant, both hoping for a solution to get them out of this mess.

XXXXXXXXXX

**Well, that turned out a lot longer than I thought it would. I was going to stuff more in this chapter, but I don't wanna make this thing super long and bore you guys to death. So next chapter! :D **

**A huge thanks and hug to everyone who reviewed last chapter! Not only did I get up to 100 reviews (Yay!), I also got the most reviews on any of these chapters so far. So thank you!**

**For all my delena hopefuls out there, go take a peek at my profile avatar picture thingy. If you feel depressed about where our couple is going, I definitely think it will make you smile. Or squeal, like I did. I don't even care if it's some big tease to get us to keep watching, or if it only happened because maybe Rose died. I'll take whatever we get lol. Anyway PM or review me about your reactions. I love to hear from you guys!**


	9. Burn to Ash

"Finally! You guys took forever!" Caroline chirped, hopping up and down excitedly. Stefan cracked a fond smile.

"Actually, it's only been five minutes." Bonnie corrected. She looked wary, standing a little apart from the group, obviously extremely aware she was surrounded by vampires. They stood outside of the restaurant, which was just opening for the early eaters. "Anyway, let's go and get this over with." She gave them a pointed look and marched inside.

Damon cocked his head. "You think she told Elena?" he asked Stefan.

"She couldn't have." Stefan said, but he looked slightly panicked.

Caroline looked back and forth between the two of them. "This is so weird. Do you like, still think the same? Is it weird taking showers?"

Damon rolled his eyes at his brother and noticed that he was smiling, his eyes sparkling with humor. What? Before he could assess this further, the door opened. "You guys coming or do you actually want to be stuck like that forever?" Bonnie asked impatiently. Everyone quickly followed her inside.

It was just how Damon remembered it, except a lot more empty. A couple gossiping waitresses in the corner were the only people in sight. The hostess, who was texting, looked up in surprise at all the people.

"Table for four?" she asked.

"Oh no actually we…" Stefan began. The host smiled flirtatiously and leaned forward.

"How about table for two?" she asked wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. Stefan looked bewildered. Damon held behind a laugh with a cough.

"He's with me." Caroline said suddenly, placing a possessive hand on Stefan's shoulder. The two girls stared at each other menacingly, a silent battle of wills.

Finally, the girl leaned back, defeated. Caroline smiled. "So what do you want?" she said, arms crossed.

The four stared at each other questioningly. "Umm…" Bonnie began, her mind searching for the right words. "We're looking for a certain waitress…"

The host pulled out a magazine and flipped idly through the pages. "Go look over there. Have a nice day Barbie." She said, motioning over to the group of waiters in the corner. They all willingly walked over there, except for a belligerent Caroline, who had to be dragged.

The group of waiters watched with interest as they walked over. "Can we help you?" a pretty brunette asked. Her strange hazel eyes looked confused as they flicked between the four.

"Yeah. We're looking for a waitress…" Stefan supplied this time.

Now her eyes flashed with understanding. "You too?" she muttered, more to herself than anything. "Follow me."

The foursome exchanged hopeful glances before following her. She led them to the back of the restaurant and through a door marked "Employees Only." Down the small hallway, she stopped at a door. "Here we are. Just knock. And good luck." With one last smile, she squeezed past them and disappeared.

"Well that was weird." Damon said.

"Tell me about it."Stefan muttered.

Bonnie sighed and knocked at the beat up door. Almost immediately, it opened, revealing the same waitress who gave them that strange fortune cookie only two nights ago. Her eyes widened in horror when she saw who was behind the open door. She tried to shut the door, but Damon quickly placed his foot in the corner, stopping it. He hissed in pain.

"Stefan…you seriously need to eat a human or two." He said.

The door creaked open again. "I'm busy." She said.

Damon raised his eyebrows. "Well that's too bad. We have a couple questions that you need to answer."

The woman stared at them for a while before sighing. "Come on in."

XXXXXXXXXX

Elena sat unsurely on her bed, yellow light filtering through her diaphanous curtains.

She needed to talk to someone.

But Bonnie and Caroline weren't answering their phones, and both Jeremy and Jenna were both gone. Then who? Elena was staring depressed off into space when it hit her. Of course. Why hadn't she thought of that before? Elena was smiling as she pulled out her ever faithful diary and a pen.

Without hesitation, she began to write.

_Dear Diary,_

_So much has happened in this past day, most of it having to do with Stefan. Whenever I think about him, I get this warm bubbly feeling that I haven't felt in so long._

_There's something different about Stefan. Something amazing. He has a fire I never knew he had. And I'm falling even harder for him._

_For a while, I was scared. Things were falling apart almost. Stefan was pulling away from me, and we lost that spark that hooked me from the beginning. Things were so much simpler back then. Stefan brought me back to life. He made me happy again. And then came his dark secret, that he was a vampire. It took me some time to realize that it didn't matter. I still loved him. But the secrets kept coming. When I saw that picture of Katherine, my life was torn apart again. I was just a replacement for him. So I ran away or, really, got kidnapped by Damon. I still loved Stefan, and he convinced me I was the only one he loved._

_Things went smoothly (as smooth as they can go with me) for a little bit, but I couldn't keep that nagging voice out of my mind._

_Then Katherine came back and my whole world got turned upside down. Stefan seemed more distant than ever, but I just convinced myself that any guy would feel the same if their crazy ex was back in town._

_And then there was Damon. He confused me, making me think about things I didn't ever consider. I care about him. But recently, I felt…I thought_

Elena chewed on her pen and looked nervously out the window.

_I don't know. If it wasn't for last night, I don't know what would've happened._

_It was one of the best nights of my life. I felt alive again, which I just realized was slipping away again. I love him. I really do. And now finally, I can see myself with him again. I can see our future without flinching or feeling sick. But…no matter how much I love it, how much I want it…it's not Stefan._

_It's not who he is._

Elena put down her pen and stared at her reflection. The girl in the mirror looked sad, her eyes drooping, a crease between her brows. She picked up a picture on the edge of her mirror. It was the only one of her and Stefan, the only picture he would allow. He looked puckered and broody, while Elena looked cornered and trapped. She threw the picture in the wastebasket. She only had it there for necessity.

She returned to her bed and laid there for a long time, trying not to think.

XXXXXXXXXX

The room was extremely small, and it was a wonder that all five of them fit. The woman sat behind her tiny desk, while the four of them fought over the only chair. Bonnie was the one who finally sat, after threatening to use her witchy aneurisms.

The woman stared at all of them.

Stefan cleared his throat awkwardly. In a sudden burst of wild movement, Damon shot forward, his hands reaching for her throat. It took a collective effort to pull him back and calm him down. "When will you learn that killing people doesn't solve anything?" Stefan said.

The waitress looked indifferent. She shrugged at the heaving Damon.

"Ignore him." Stefan said, embarrassed. "Did you do this to us? Switch us?"

Her glittering black eyes narrowed. "Yes. I'm a witch." She said simply.

Bonnie gaped. "W-What? How? But you're not black-"

"Don't be racist Bonnie." Damon quipped from the floor.

"But why?" Stefan asked.

"To help you. You are brothers, and fight like wolves over that poor girl. You both love her." They all immediately knew who that girl was. Bonnie's mouth set in a hard line. Caroline looked lost. Damon looked nervously at Stefan. Stefan was seething.

"So you decided that the best way to help this was to switch us?" Stefan asked, hands in fists.

"Yes."

"Damon loves Elena?" Caroline asked aloud.

"He better not." Bonnie warned, glaring at him.

Damon said nothing.

Stefan took a deep, calming breath. "Can you change us back?"

"No."

"And why not?" Stefan asked through clenched teeth. Damon stood up.

"I can't. That is for you two to solve."

"What? How do we do that?" Stefan asked slowly, ever patient.

"Read your fortune. It contains the answer."

Bonnie reached into the pocket of her skinny jeans and pulled out the small crumpled up piece of paper. "We did. It made no sense." She said.

The woman raised a delicate eyebrow, "Think about it. It will make sense in time."

"Or…" Damon said, his green eyes flashing menacingly. "You could tell us now."

"No. Now leave. I have work to do." She waved them away dismissively.

Damon started forward again, this time with Stefan. Both Bonnie and Caroline held them back and began to push them out the door.

"Wait." Stefan said. "I have one more question."

"Yes?" she asked, never looking up from her paper.

"When we switch bodies, do we take on the characteristics of the person whose body we're in?" Damon looked at Stefan, his eyes wide. The woman looked up, studying him with those intelligent black eyes.

"No. You are still yourself even in the other's body. You may feel outward experiences like the other, like smells or tastes or…" She looked Damon straight in the eye. "Kisses. However, you are still you. Everything you do is still from your own mind."

Stefan and Damon looked at each other, horrified.

"Oh and good luck Damon and Stefan."

With a sudden gust of air, the door shut on them.

"Well…that was extremely creepy." Damon said.

And for the second time that day, Stefan agreed with him.

XXXXXXXXXX

The walk outside was silent until Bonnie read out the fortune again.

"What could it mean?" she asked aloud. Silence once again fell on the group by the restaurant as they all pondered this.

Damon, with a feeling of dread, knew what it meant.

He had to give up Elena.

XXXXXXXXX

Elena didn't react as the light around her dimmed. When it finally disappeared she reluctantly got up and turned on the light. She gasped loudly when the sudden light revealed Stefan, arms crossed, leaning against the wall.

"Oh. Stefan." She said. For a fleeting crazy second, she wished it was Damon leaning casually against the wall, a sarcastic smirk on his face.

"No." he said, he looked down, the shadows darkening his hard jaw.

"What, are you not Stefan?" she laughed, sauntering up to him.

"Yes. I'm not." He said, swallowing hard. "I'm Damon."

She stared at him for a minute. "What?" she whispered.

"That night…after the restaurant, Stefan and I switched. I'm really Damon. In Stefan's body. And he's in my body." He said slowly.

"Stefan… are you feeling all right?" she asked, worried.

He sighed. "Elena. I'm not Stefan. I'm Damon. Think about it. Have I acted like Stefan lately?"

Elena looked down. "No. It makes sense. Everything makes sense now." She sat down on her bed, a hand to her head. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Your boyfriend didn't want me to." Damon said bitterly. Elena's big brown eyes searched him intently, pulling the truth out of him. He sighed and sat next to her on the bed. "And…I wanted a day."

"A day?"

"Without you looking at me with hate. With the fun Elena. The one I miss."

Elena swallowed hard. She bit her bottom lip. "I…You took advantage of me. You kissed me."

Damon looked down. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. It won't happen again. I promise." He looked away from her and got up. Elena felt a strange surge of panic at those words.

"Damon…" she said, getting up also. She grabbed his arm, forcing him to turn. Those familiar green eyes stared at her, but they looked different. Angry.

"Let go of me." He said suddenly. "I know this doesn't change anything."

"What do you want me to say Damon?" she said, flaring up in that way she did only around Damon. "That I just had the best night of my life with my boyfriend's boyfriend? That I knew Stefan was different and changed, and yet I didn't even care because I loved it so much?" She let go of his arm and the anger drained from her face. "It changes everything."

They stared at each other, Damon speechless. "Elena…I'm sorry." He finally choked out. He carefully and hesitantly reached out and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Elena flinched away from his touch and Damon winced and stepped away. "I was wrong." Elena staredat him, confused. "I should have never gone after you. You love my brother, and he loves you. I can't take that away from you. I don't want to ruin your lives anymore. I won't be that selfish. You both deserve to be happy. Without me."

"Damon..." She said, overwhelmed. She couldn't think. Her mind was buzzing, warring. She slumped back on her bed, her head in her hands.

"Goodbye Elena." She felt the softest pressure of something on the top her head. When she looked up in alarm, the room was empty.

Damon jumped down from her window and closed his eyes hard. When he opened them, Stefan was standing in front of him, his expression unfathomable.

"You heard that?" Damon asked simply.

Stefan nodded. "We need to talk."

Elena wiped at a stubborn tear and reached for her diary, which lay in between her sheets. She flipped through it until she got to the entry she had written today. With an angry flourish, she tore out the page and ripped it into small tiny pieces. She tossed them into the wastebasket along with her picture with Stefan and searched in her drawer until she found her matchstick box. She drew one out, lit it, and dropped it in. Then she watched the remnants of her heart burn and shrivel into ash.

XXXXXXXXXX

So what'd you guys think? Sorry, I tend to be a bit dramatic haha.

Wow. I cannot say enough how amazing you reviewers are. Hugs for you all!

I'm sorry to all I confused last chapter. As you can see, that won't be much of a problem anymore. ;)

Please review!


	10. Sacrifice

Damon ran after Stefan without hesitation. Something inside of him wondered if he should feel any apprehension, but he found himself just not caring anymore. What would Stefan have to say anyway? Congratulate him on finally making the right decision? Rub it in his face that he had won? Or more likely, pity him. He didn't need that.

But curiosity took over, and Damon followed willingly enough. Stefan stopped suddenly, and Damon slowed down next to him. He looked around in awe, memories washing over him. They were at the quarry, the same place where they waited in transition to die. Where Stefan had damned him to an eternity of emptiness. _Until Elena_, his head added wryly. He blocked out that voice and turned to look expectantly at Stefan.

He was sitting by the water, arms spread out to support behind him in a relaxing position. He had a strangely peaceful look on his face as he gazed out at the water. For a minute, the dark sky seemed to flash light blue, the foliage grew more wild, and Stefan's hair seemed longer, his clothes of another time. He blinked, and it was gone. He plopped down next to Stefan. They sat like that for a while, like they had so many years ago, just enjoying the cool night air and the comfortable, and admittedly rare, silence. The water was placid, clearly mirroring the many stars above.

Finally, when the crescent moon had reached its apex and was climbing back down the sky, Stefan turned to Damon. "I'm sorry." Damon opened his mouth, but Stefan was continuing on. "For turning you. I just wanted my brother with me." Damon couldn't think of a single damned thing to say. He had spent his whole existence torturing Stefan, doing everything in his power to make him miserable. Destroying every shred of happiness he had gained. He was in love with his girlfriend for god's sakes. And here he was…apologizing. Damon suddenly felt tired, tired of everything. "You're my big brother, Damon. I need you." Stefan looked down, biting his lip. "I remember when I was a little, and I used to copy everything you did." He gave a watery laugh. "You weren't just my brother, or my role model. You were my best friend. And I wouldn't have survived eternity without you. I guess I could thank Katherine for that."

Damon wanted to say something, anything. But his mouth wasn't working.

"Damon…" Stefan looked up at him, his expression sad. "You deserve to be happy. I want you to be happy."

Damon shook his head, slowly, sadly. "No. Stefan…no. I tortured you. I killed. I made your life miserable. If there's anything I deserve, it's to be dead." His voice was thick with emotion.

"I'm not blind, Damon. Just ignorant. You're in love with Elena." He let that hang in the stagnant air for a second; let it echo through the empty woods. Damon made no move to deny or reinforce his statement. He only stiffened slightly, something Stefan wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't known his brother so well. "I've tried so hard to ignore what was right in front of me, but it's impossible. I didn't want history repeating itself. But it doesn't have to."

"It's not. I'm stepping away, so you two can have your rainbows and lollipop fairytale ending." He got up, angry, but Stefan was holding him back, preventing him from running to the comforting shadows. He tried to pull away, but his grip was like iron.

"No. Damon, you said you were the selfish one, but that's not true. I am. I can't let you sacrifice the only happiness you ever had in so long." He let go of Damon's arm, and he didn't try to run this time.

"Well I'm sorry the martyr position is already taken." Damon said, too tired and shocked to put much sarcasm in his voice. He had a feeling he knew where Stefan was going, and he could not let him do that.

"Elena…she changed you. I can see that. She brings out a side in you that no one else can see. So…I'm stepping back."Damon's mouth popped open and his eyes darted back and forth. Stefan gave a small smile, his eyes hard with determination.

"No. No. Stefan, I won't…"

"I've made up my mind." Stefan said.

"Stefan. Will you stop being such a damn idiot? Elena loves you. Not me. Never me. Why the hell would you give that up? Did you hit your head or something? Are you drunk?"

That smile never left Stefan's face. "I'm perfectly sane thank you." He said. And then he laughed. _Laughed_. Suddenly he was flying, and landed with a large splash inside the freezing water. He surfaced, sputtering. "What the hell?" he asked.

"There. You sober now?" Damon asked, looking worriedly at him. But Stefan laughed again, and Damon knew it didn't work.

"Damon. I'm not drunk." He walked out of the water, wringing out his soaked clothes. "Look, Damon. You're finally feeling something because of Elena, and I'm not going to let that slip away."

"But you love her." Damon said, still bewildered.

"Yes. But you love her more, enough to give her up. You want her to be happy, but I don't think she would be with me. I want her, but you need her."

"There's just one problem with your messed up logic. She hates me."

Stefan's mouth quirked. "I don't think she ever did. She tries, I know she does, but she can't. She forgave you for killing her brother last night, Damon. How is that hate?" He sighed quietly.

Damon's head jerked up. "She did?" he asked, hopeful.

Stefan just nodded. "There's something between you two, something I can't ignore anymore. She feels something for you; you just need to be patient. You know how stubborn she can be. So I'm stepping back."

"I can't let you do this Stefan." There was a time when he would've jumped on this idea, would've rejoiced. But now, all he felt was horror.

"I'll do whatever I want." He said defiantly.

Damon sighed. "You're making a big mistake Stefan." He said warningly.

"No, I don't think I am." Stefan said. His eyes were clear, his usually brooding forehead straightened out.

As Damon looked at him, he felt something crack and break off. "I'm sorry." He said finally, thoughtfully. "I was wrong. For making your life this hell. And you're my little brother, Stef." He ruffled his wet hair. "I should have stayed away from Elena. Hell, I should have stayed away from you. But I couldn't. I needed you too and…" He sighed and swallowed hard. "God, this pouring your soul out thing hurts."

Stefan chuckled. "And…"

"And… I don't think I could've lived without you either." He looked down, embarrassed. But even as he said the words, he felt something changing inside of him. Something building inside him. Suddenly, he felt warm arms wrap around him, and with a shock, he realized Stefan was hugging him.

He was hugging him.

Something finally broke inside of him, and he felt tears leaking out of his eyes. His shoulder felt wet, and he knew that Stefan was crying too. They stood like that for a while, both sobbing silently in the white moonlight. The sun slowly rose in the east, lazily lighting up the water. The brothers broke apart. Stefan looked at Damon, and Damon smiled. Not a smirk, but a smile. The one that reaches your eyes and lights up your face. He felt light, as if a big heavy weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Fuck, he felt happy. Free. Stefan smiled too, and there wasn't a trace of brooding in him.

Then, an earthquake rocked the ground. Damon suddenly felt like he was fire. His soul felt like it was being ripped from his body. The pain was deafening and his vision went black. A white light blinded him, chasing away the black. The white faded away gradually, along with the painful fire. Feeling rushed back into his body, flooding all the way to his toes. He blinked, feeling impossibly heavy, but the light remained, making him squint. He wanted to rub his eyes, but he found he couldn't move his arms. He closed his eyes hard, and when he opened them, found himself staring at the light blue sky. He tried to sit up, but didn't have the strength. Instead, he warily lifted his arm in front of his face. Something seemed different, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

He breathed in slowly, and felt a plethora of scents tickle his nose. He could hear Stefan's slow breathing next to him. Stefan. Damon rolled his head to the side, and saw something that made him gasp. It was Stefan, not himself, but Stefan, in his own body. Which meant…

With a sudden burst of energy Damon flew towards the water. He bent down, and waited as the picture formed. He raised a wary hand and brought it to his face. The reflection mimicked. "Beautiful…" he muttered, smiling.

"Cocky much?" Stefan asked. Damon sighed in relief. It was nice hearing his voice talking for once, not his own.

"I'm wet." Damon said.

"That's your own fault." Stefan laughed.

"You tell anyone about this and you're dead little brother." Damon said, still smiling.

"Mmm, looks like I got some blackmail. The great Damon Salvatore cried." Stefan said with a laugh.

"Oh yeah, well…"

"Damon!" The brothers turned towards the desperate voice. "Damon damn it, answer me!"

Stefan looked at Damon, his green eyes sparkling. "Go to her."

Damon suddenly felt nervous. "I…I can't…"

"I'll talk to her first." Stefan said, clapping him on the back. And with that, he was gone, leaving a horrified Damon.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Damon?" Elena asked excitedly, her eyes hopeful.

Stefan sighed slowly. "No. It's Stefan. We switched back."

Elena looked incredulous. "You did? How?"

"I guess some brotherly redemption was all it took." Stefan said sadly.

Elena just nodded, not pressing for details.

"Elena, I…"

"Stefan, I…"

They both said it at the same time and chuckled awkwardly.

"You first." Stefan offered with a smile.

She didn't return it. "I learned some things during your switch. And I…" she trailed off nervously.

"You can't stay with me any longer." Stefan finished.

Elena blushed. "Yes. How'd you know?"

"I learned a couple things too." He supplied. "We just don't work anymore."

Elena grabbed his hands and looked at him sadly. "Somewhere along the way we changed. I'm not that girl anymore, broken and needing to be fixed."

Stefan nodded. "I'll always love you Elena. It just won't ever be enough."

"You're too good for me Stefan." She whispered and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. Stefan savored the touch. He wrapped his arms around her and sighed.

"I think it's the other way around." He said, dropping a kiss on her head before releasing her. "Now go to Damon. He needs you." He waited for her to deny it or ignore it, but she just nodded.

"I know." She said.

XXXXXXXXXX

After some time of anxious waiting, Stefan came out of the clearing, Elena next to him, looking somber. When she saw Damon, her eyes lit up.

Elena suddenly rushed forward, capturing him in a giant hug, cutting off any words behind his tongue. _There's something between you two, something I can't ignore anymore. She feels something for you; you just need to be patient. You know how stubborn she is._

"Elena…" he warned, but she only hugged him tighter, burying her face in his shoulder. It shouldn't feel this perfect, this right. He wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her, but he couldn't. In the corner of his eye he spotted Stefan at the edge of the clearing, hands in his pockets, watching him. He gave Damon a solemn nod and a small smile. Then, he walked slowly away, disappearing in the forest.

"Don't leave me." Elena was muttering into his clothes.

Damon blinked in surprise. "I'm not leaving you Elena."

She looked up, watery eyes searching him. "You're not?"

"What would make you think that?"

She looked down and unhooked her arms from him. He immediately felt cold. "You said…you said goodbye."

"I could never leave you." Damon said truthfully, and Elena looked shocked, and a little relieved. "How did you find me?" He asked, quickly changing the subject.

Elena looked up, eyes thoughtful. "I don't really know." She said. "I thought about you all night long, and…I realized I couldn't lose you. So I went outside and I felt…this is going to sound really cheesy…like there was a string pulling me towards you. A string from my heart." She looked like she wanted to say more, but Damon interrupted her.

"What did you want to tell me?" he whispered, throat dry.

Elena immediately looked conflicted. "I…I don't know. Just that…that what we have….it's more than friendship. And I don't want to ignore that anymore. But…I'm just so confused, and… I don't know!" Damon wanted to kiss away her pain, to hold her tight and tell her everything would be fine. But it wasn't his decision to make.

"Stefan broke up with me." She said quietly. A rush of emotions flooded through Damon. He really did it.

"Elena…I'm sorry."

"Don't be. We both wanted it. We just don't fit anymore."

"Oh." He said simply, stupidly. His mind wasn't working again.

They stared at each other, the smiles fading away as the tension between them sparked. Elena's eyes flicked to his lips.

Looking back, Damon would never be sure which one of them moved first. But their lips were upon each other, moving in a passionate rhythm. Elena moaned as fireworks exploded and sparks flew. Fire seemed to heat up everything, and she couldn't think of anything that wasn't Damon. It was perfect. They drew apart, smiled, and leaned in again for more. The second kiss was slower than the second, less desperate. Elena's knees buckled when their tongues touched, and would have collapsed if Damon hadn't been holding her so tightly, his hand stroking her hair ever so slightly, sending shivers throughout her.

They pulled apart again, and Elena wondered how she could've ever stayed away from this. She couldn't even conjure up any regret that she kissed him, even though she just broke up with Stefan. She knew that nothing would be slow with Damon.

"But we work, don't we? In some sort of messed up way." She was smiling now, and Damon felt his lips quirk in response.

"Definitely messed up." He agreed, his mouth now widening in an involuntary smile.

And in the bright light of the rising sun, they leaned in for another kiss, both finally feeling whole again.

XXXXXXXXXX

Well, I wish I could end it there, but we can't just leave poor Stefan hanging like that, can we? Well, I can't anyway. And yeah, I do think that if he really sees something between Damon and Elena, he'll back off, just because he's awesome like that. ;)

I wasn't really going to have them kiss this chapter, as it seemed kind of fast, but the new eppy kind of depressed me. Poor Rose. That dream sequence was absolutely heartbreakingly beautiful though. And that last scene with Damon… no words.

But…I don't know if its because I'm extremely slow or something, but where the heck was the "it's okay to love them both?" Don't tell me they decided to take that out. That's just cruel.

Anyway, please review! I'm kinda scared I bored you with my big brother redemption thing. Sorry, it was essential to the story. Next chapter's the last! :'(


	11. The End

For those who wondered about the "it's okay to love them both', read this:

_Another fun tidbit: We asked Cohan about that conversation between Rose and Elena that was in the promo but not in the actual episode — specifically that line in which Rose told Elena it was okay to love both Salvatore brothers. She says they shot a bunch of stuff that she assumes was trimmed for time, including "a deranged rampage through the parking lot, which really felt like the peak of the dementia" in between Rose killing the janitor and the car couple, as well as that revealing portion of her chat with Elena. "I loved that piece between Rose and Elena because I think Rose looked at Elena like a younger sister in a way, and it really was okay that Elena loves different things in both of these men. Being conflicted doesn't make her a bad person. It was almost like Rose needed to tell her to not be so hard on herself and to not give up," she says. "It was really cute because Elena tried to cover the fact that she does love them both in a way. That's when Rose kinda pushed her to say it. [She's saying] 'Come on. Just admit it. You don't have to feel bad about it,' in the same breath as, 'Own who you are. It's okay to let them fight for you. It's okay to want to live. And it's okay to be conflicted. Keep going.'"_

Now I see why they took it out. *Sigh*

Oh! For all the book fans, the author, LJ Smith got fired, allegedly because she wanted a Delena ending, while the publishers demanded Stelena. WTH? This can't happen. I'll cry. Ugh! Why does everyone hate Delena so much?

Anyway, here's the last chapter of Freaky Vampires. Don't forget to read my A/N at the end. Enjoy!

XXXXXXXXXX

"I just can't believe you're dating Damon Salvatore." Caroline huffed, tossing a strand of blonde hair over her shoulder.

"Well…we're not exactly dating yet. I mean, I just broke up with Stefan yesterday. And we still have things to figure out…" Elena said. They were both standing outside the school, waiting for the morning bell to ring. Students milled about all around them, and for once in her life, Elena felt happy. She couldn't stop smiling.

"So I guess jumping Stefan's brother the second you're broken up doesn't mean you're dating." Caroline shot back, eyebrows raised and a slight smile on her lips.

Elena blushed scarlet. "I should've never told you that. It's just…I was bottling it up for so long, and…it kind of exploded."

"Have you had sex yet?"

"Caroline!" Elena said, appalled, yet somewhat amused.

"You did, didn't you?"

"No! I mean, we want to take it slow…"

"Which takes me back to jumping him as soon as you've broken up with Stefan."

"Caroline!" Elena squealed, slapping at her and crying out in pain. She had forgotten she was a vampire.

Caroline laughed. "Well who I am to judge? What did you do anyway after you kissed?"

"Well…we…um kissed some more and we both agreed that we would figure everything out tomorrow. Then he took me home and well…we talked for hours."

"Just talked?" Caroline asked dubiously.

"Yeah. About everything and anything. And then…well we were both tired; neither of us had slept the night before, so we fell asleep in each other's arms." Elena swooned a bit. "I never talked that long with Stefan." Elena added thoughtfully.

"Speaking of Stefan how is he? Is he just okay with all of this?" Caroline tried to keep her tone casual and failed miserably. Elena raised her eyebrows.

"He's fine …I think." Elena said guiltily. "I actually don't really know. I haven't seen him yet…"

"Well maybe…"

"ELENA GILBERT!" A small form stormed through the crowds, pushing people angrily out of her way. Elena and Caroline both winced. It was Bonnie. She came to a furious stop in front of the girls, an unbridled fire in her eyes. Students turned, pointing and whispering. "Please, Elena. Please tell me you are not going out with Damon." More whispers at that name. Elena supposed it was very well known in Mystic Falls. Bonnie was speaking loud, and Elena wished she could be a little quieter.

"Um…"she said quietly, hoping to quell the witch's anger. "I kind of am Bonnie."

"WHAT? ARE YOU CRAZY? DO YOU WANT TO DIE?" She blurted out. A vein twitched in her forehead.

"Bonnie. Calm down." Caroline said soothingly, placing a hand on her arm. "People are watching."

Bonnie shook it off violently. "I WILL NOT CALM DOWN! Especially when she-"Bonnie pointed an accusatory finger at Elena. "-IS GOING OUT WITH A MONSTER!" There were hisses and ooh's from the crowd that was now gathering.

"Bonnie, it's not…"

Bonnie took a deep breath. "Look, I dealt with it when you were dating Stefan, but this is Damon. He is evil. And I will not let you be with him."

"What are you my mom now?" Elena seethed. "You don't get to decide who I-"

"What's going on here?" The crowd all turned to the amused and lazy voice. It was Damon, flanked by Stefan. Jeremy followed close behind.

"You." Bonnie breathed, glaring at Damon. The crowd all took an involuntary step back as she took a step forward. "You did this." Another step. Damon gave Elena an amused glance, and Elena felt her heart flutter despite the circumstances. She noticed he was smiling, his whole face glowing. It was beautiful. _Don't push her_, she warned with her eyes. Damon cocked his head slightly, conveying _I'll be fine_. Stefan sent Elena a confused and slightly sad look.

"That's the guy on YouTube…" one boy whispered, pointing at Stefan, his eyes wide. "The dancing one…"

"Did what?" Damon asked innocently.

Something inside Bonnie snapped.

Several things happened at once. Damon collapsed on the floor, writhing in pain. Elena and Stefan both jerked over to him. A wind ripped through the school, scattering any stray papers and causing the crowd to dissipate in fear. Caroline grabbed Bonnie and shook her violently. Bonnie clenched her fists and Damon began convulsing in pain. Stefan stood up and shook Bonnie along with Caroline.

"Bonnie!" they screamed, shaking her madly. Her hair was whipping wildly around her face, only the whites of her eyes visible, a small crimson drop of blood dripping from her nose. Suddenly Jeremy ran up and cupped Bonnie's face in both of his hands, knocking both Stefan and Caroline out his way.

"Bonnie. Stop. I know you. You're not this person. Bonnie, please." With every word, the wind was dying down. Damon relaxed and fell to the floor, and Elena sighed and pulled him into a hug. Bonnie blinked, her eyes returning to normal. With no warning, she slumped into Jeremy's arms. While Caroline and Stefan bent to Damon, Bonnie's eyes fluttered open.

"Jeremy…I'm sorry." She whispered.

"It's me you should be saying sorry-"

"Damon, shut up!"

"Thank you." she added, looking at him in a strange way.

Jeremy sighed and tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. "Anytime." He chuckled.

Somewhere in the distance, a bell rang, signaling the start of school. "Are you okay?" Elena asked, looking worriedly at Damon. Bonnie's eyes darkened, and she pushed her way of Jeremy's arms.

"Let's just get to class." She murmured, stomping off. Jeremy watched her leave, his eyes sad.

"Yeah, Elena. You two go on ahead. I'll be fine." Damon said, wincing as he pulled himself on the ground.

"What are you doing here anyway?" Elena asked curiously.

"I just wanted to see you again." Damon said charmingly, no shame on his face. Elena blushed. "Now go. You don't want to ruin your perfect school record." Elena laughed.

"Stefan Salvatore to the Principal's office." A powerful voice droned on the intercom, echoing over the campus. Stefan raised his eyebrows and Damon paled.

"I better go see what they want. Come on Elena." Stefan sent Damon one last curious look before the two made their way inside.

Damon swallowed. Now that he was all reformed and all, he actually felt guilty about getting Stefan in trouble. He sighed and stood up wobbly, intent on leaving before…

"DAMON! YOU GOT ME 3 DAMN MONTHS OF DETENTION?"

It was time to leave.

XXXXXXXXXX

Elena scanned the crowded lunch room, searching for the familiar blonde head and at the same time keeping an eye out for Bonnie. She did not want to run into her.

"Elena."

Elena winced and turned around, trapped. Bonnie stared at her with wide, tear rimmed eyes. "Elena, I'm sorry. I shouldn't tell you who's good for you. Yeah, I hate Damon and think the world would be a better place if you shoved a stake through his heart…"

"Bonnie."

"But if he makes you happy, then that's all I care about." Bonnie said, giving her a small smile.

Elena captured her friend in a giant hug. "Oh, Bonnie." She said, tearing up.

"Why wasn't I invited to this group hug?" an indignant voice asked. Bonnie and Elena turned to find Caroline, head held high.

"Aw, come on in." Elena and Bonnie tugged Caroline into their hug.

And just for a small while, they weren't a human, a witch, and a vampire. They were three teenage girls, and the best of friends.

XXXXXXXXX

"Hey, Elena. Remember that touching speech I gave you on not caring who it is that you're dating, as long as they make you happy?" Bonnie asked, staring over Elena's head, her lunch ignored.

"Of course. You gave it to me like five minutes ago." Elena laughed taking a bite of her apple. Her eyes were narrowed at Caroline and Stefan, who were sitting close together and laughing hysterically. Caroline had her flirt face on and Stefan was laughing. Loud. She knew wasn't jealous, just confused.

"Kenny G Stefan? Really?" Caroline asked, giggling.

"What? I find him very soothing." Stefan defended, a smile playing on his lips. Elena didn't know that. Suddenly she smiled as she watched Caroline laid a hand on Stefan's arm. Caroline and Stefan…she liked it. They were complete opposites, but they worked, in that strange way that she and Damon also worked.

"…me?...Elena?"

"Huh?" Elena asked, turning back to Bonnie. She hadn't realized she had been talking.

"I said, do you think that applies to me?" Bonnie asked, seeming nervous, her eyes were still trained on something to the side of Elena's head. Elena racked her brains for a second and realized she was talking about the speech. Elena followed Bonnie's gaze, which was fixed on a tall boy sitting in the shadows of a tree, listening to music. Jeremy. Elena's mind seemed to go on overload. Jeremy?

"Of course it does, Bonnie." Elena murmured comfortingly.

Bonnie seemed relieved.

Caroline and Stefan. Bonnie and Jeremy.

It just might work.

XXXXXXXXXX

Damon knocked on Elena's door, feeling all too giddy and nervous. The door opened revealing wide, doe eyes.

"Elena…" he said smiling. The door was promptly shut in his face.

"Go away, Damon." Came her muffled voice from the other side of the closed door.

"What? Elena, I…"

"Just leave me alone, Damon. I don't want to see you."

Shock reverberated through Damon. It was just a mistake.

He turned and ran to the shadows

XXXXXXXXXX

Elena sat on her bed, staring numbly into space. The air blurred and Damon was laying on her bed, teddy bear and wolf clutched to his chest. He looked unsettled, an air of tension around him.

"You've been avoiding me." He said, sounding unsure and nervous.

Elena swallowed. "I…"

Damon placed his finger softly on her lips, silencing her. He leaned back and narrowed his eyes. "Look Elena, I get it. You just wanted to experience the bad boy."

"What? Damon…"

"And now that you've kissed me, you regret everything and want to go right back to Stefan, where you belong. It was just a mistake, and you feel bad for stringing me along, and you're letting me down easy by ignoring me."

"I…"

"I get it Elena." He stood up and with sudden horror, Elena realized he was leaving. She grabbed his arm and pulled him back onto the bed. She grabbed his face, forcing him to look in her eyes. She couldn't stand the bright, hurt look in them.

"Damon. It wasn't a mistake. I wanted it. And I'm not avoiding you. I'm…scared."

"…scared?"

"Scared of this. Of what we have. I've never felt anything like this before, not even with Stefan, and…I'm scared."

Elena watched as a smile once again crept on his face, one of awe. He leaned down, eyes flashing in that way that made her heart flutter. "Elena. I'm scared too, that somehow I'll mess up the best thing that's ever happened to me." He whispered, before bending down to kiss her. Elena melted into the kiss, how it felt so right, so natural.

"The course of true love never does run smooth." Elena whispered. They stared at each other for a while before bursting out in laughter.

"This mushiness is going to take some getting used to." Damon said. Elena raised an eyebrow. "But I think I can do it."

He gave her another firework inducing kiss, one she felt all the way down to her toes.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Why the hell are we here again?"

"Well, everything's back to normal so I thought it would be fun. Besides, the food is good." Elena said cocking her head at Damon. It was hard to care about anything when Damon was trailing a lazy finger up and down her thigh. She thought she might die. Or burst into flames.

Damon sighed. "But did we have to come with all of them?" He motioned to the rest of the gang. Caroline was sitting next to Stefan, and Bonnie was with Jeremy.

"Bonnie, my pants are freaking pink! Change it back!" Jeremy wailed, picking at his now bubble gum pink jeans.

Bonnie laughed hard. "No! Someone might see." She said.

"Bonnie, seriously! And why would you ever need a spell like this anyway?" Jeremy asked.

"You asked for it. And I'll change it back, Jere. Just a second." Bonnie said, trying to keep a straight face.

"Sure you can do it without fainting?" Damon asked.

"Damon, be civil…" Elena warned.

"Define civil."

"Aha, look who's back! And back to normal again, I see." a chipper voice laughed. The table collectively turned to see the Asian lady who had got them in this mess in the first place. Of course, it had all worked out in the end, Damon mused, squeezing Elena's hand from under the table. "And with friends." She added, grinning at Caroline, who seemed alarmed. Jeremy looked confused, then shrugged and gulped down his drink.

"Yeah everything's fine now." Stefan said, inclining his head gratefully. "Better." He added, looking sideways at Caroline then swinging over to wink at Damon. Elena felt a dull pain in her chest and a prickle in her eyes. But then Damon turned to her and smoothed a stray hair out of her face and Elena couldn't even think of hurting.

"I see you've made the right choice." The lady continued, looking deeply at Elena.

Elena nodded. "I did. If it wasn't for you, I may have never made it at all."

Those black eyes softened. "Maybe. Maybe not. So what would you like to eat?" Everyone at the table shook themselves and ordered their various food dishes.

"Kung Pao again Damon? And extra spicy?" Bonnie asked. "You think you would've learned your lesson."

"What lesson? It was nothing. I can take it." Damon responded, looking unsurely at his plate of food.

"Woah- we're half way there-"Caroline and Stefan sang.

"Maybe I wanted it to get out of this torture." Damon said, making a face.

"For once, I might actually agree with you." Bonnie laughed.

"Woah! Living on a prayer!" The two continued, unaware.

"Can someone shut them up?" Damon begged. Elena laughed. "You think this is funny?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow threatingly.

"Maybe." Elena giggled.

"I'll show you funny…" he muttered, reaching over to tickle her. Elena snorted and laughed noisily. While she was defenseless, Damon kissed her.

"Ugh, please not at the table." Jeremy gagged.

"I think I just lost my appetite." Bonnie said, eying her egg roll warily.

"Here goes…" Damon said. He scooped up his food and quickly popped it in his mouth, swallowing fast. "See? I'm perfectly fine. Eat your- oh come ON!" The table erupted in laughter as Damon inhaled a glass of water.

"You think after living for 150 years you would have some immunity to a little spice." Bonnie commented, scooping up some noodles. Damon glared daggers behind the glass.

"You want to try some? This stuff is poison." Damon gurgled, grabbing more water.

Their waitress came around to collect their dishes, and Elena sat back to watch the rest of the table.

Damon's hand was still trailing absentmindedly up and down her leg, and every once in a while he would turn to her and just smile, his whole face lighting up. Next to him sat Stefan, who was still laughing with Caroline, in a way he had never with her. Bonnie was looking at Jeremy in a way that was all too familiar to Elena; It was her flirting face. Jeremy was laughing and grinning goofily, and Elena's heart swelled. They were like some sort of dysfunctional family.

"Here's your bill back." The Chinese waitress said. Elena realized they didn't even know her name. "And of course, another fortune cookie." She dropped it in the middle of the table, and gave them a bright smile. "I wish you all a long happy life." She gave a small bow, and disappeared into the crowd.

Bonnie eyed the fortune cookie. "I am not opening that."

Elena rolled her eyes. "I will." She said. She popped the cookie out of its plastic wrapping and cradled it in her palm. The table had gone dead silent; they stared at her expectantly.

Carefully, Elena cracked the cookie open and pulled out the small folding paper.

"_The journey has come to a close_

_But you are nowhere near done_

_Live your life with your heart wide open_

_And happiness will surely come your way_"

She stared solemnly at the group as she dropped the fortune on the table, and they stared gravely back. "And your lucky numbers are 3, 7, and 21."

They all laughed and slid out of the table. "Who wants to go to the arcade?" Damon asked. There was a chorus of yes's.

Damon cocked his head at Elena, who was lingering at the table. "You go on ahead." She said. "I forgot something." Damon nodded and pressed a kiss to her forehead before running after the group.

Elena watched as Damon walked in step with Stefan, both of them walking clumsily with their arms slung over each other's shoulders, laughing. With a secret smile, she reached down and grabbed her fortune. She read it over again, and wiped a small tear away. Then, she tucked it inside her purse and walked away.

And so, just as Katherine tore the brothers apart so many years ago, Elena, her doppelganger and opposite in many ways, would be the one to bring them back together again.

THE END.

XXXXXXXXXX

I'm seriously crying here. I cannot believe it's over. You don't know how much this means to me. This is actually the first story I've ever finished. Ever. Even those little short stories I wrote as a kid. I have an extremely short attention span, and usually give up stuff as soon as I start it. I probably wouldn't have finished this story either if it wasn't for you wonderful reviewers. Seriously, you guys all deserve a huge hug and a hot picture of either Damon or Stefan (whichever floats your boat) lol. I would've responded to each of your reviews, but I actually only figured out how to do that like half way through the story. And then I felt like it was too late haha. But please review this last chapter and tell me what you thought of the whole story, and I'll respond to those. What was your favorite or least favorite part? Most funny part? And please, feel free to give criticism. I am well aware of the many loop holes in the story lol, but I'd love to know what I need to improve on (plot, grammar, characterization? All? Probably lol). And for all those who favorite without reviewing, please review too haha!

A special thanks to Dark-Supernatural-Angel, singergirl07, and Chewy14, who reviewed every chapter. Thank you so much!

Also, would you guys like a sequel? I was considering doing one where Bonnie and Caroline switch places. I think it would be hilarious to have Bonnie dealing with vampirism and Caroline with her witchy powers. Plus I could dive more into the Delena, Beremy, and Steroline relationships, which I left kind of open ended. Go to my profile to vote!

I also have another story that I'm starting to type up (AU, AH of course!). It's hilarious, and of course Delena! I'm not sure if I'll put it up soon, but keep an eye out for it! ;) And if you haven't already, check out my other stories!

Well, sorry for blabbering too much. I'm just so sad to let this fic go. It's my favorite, and I had an absolute blast writing it. Our Delena couple might seem impossible right now, but we have to be patient.

To all my fellow writers out there, never give up on your dream.

Love,

AuTumnlove77


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